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e x c e l l e n c e i n j o u r n a l i s m
Vol.11 No. 49 April 13-19, 2019 80 Cents New York Edition Follow us on TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Imran sees better chance of peace

talks with India if Modi wins
Pak’s ‘Indian attack imminent’ outcry fails to elicit international concern
Islamabad: Pakistan Prime “Perhaps if the BJP ̶ a right‑
Minister Imran Khan has said he wing party ̶ wins, some kind of
thinks there may be a better settlement in Kashmir could be
chance of peace talks with India reached,” Khan told a group of
if his Indian counterpart, foreign journalists in an inter‑
Narendra Modi's party wins the view. This was despite the mas‑
general election beginning sive alienation that Muslims in
Thursday. Kashmir and Muslims, in general,
Khan said that if the opposition were facing in Modi's India, he
Congress party led group comes claimed. He said Modi, like Israeli Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah at the
to power, it might be too scared Prime Minister Benjamin release of their party's election manifesto at BJP headquarters
to seek a settlement with Netanyahu, was electioneering in New Delhi on April 8. (Photo courtesy Reuters)
Pakistan over Kashmir, fearing a Pakistan Prime Minister based on “fear and nationalist
Imran Khan. (Photo Twitter)

BJP's election
backlash from the right. Continued on page 4

Netanyahu, challenger both NYC declares measles emergency

claim victory in Israeli elections to curb spread in Brooklyn
Jerusalem: Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu's right‑wing
Likud party had a lead of less
than two per cent over the cen‑
New York: New York City on Tuesday ramped up the
battle against the spread of a measles outbreak in a
Brooklyn hot spot, declaring a public health emer‑
manifesto vows
gency and calling for mandatory vaccinations. Mayor
trist Blue and White coalition in
early results from Israel's general
e lect ions, of ficials said on
Wednesday.
Bill de Blasio said the emergency covers four
Brooklyn ZIP codes, including most of Williamsburg
and Borough Park, which have seen more than 285
cases of the measles since October.
to strip Kashmir
With 18.3 per cent of the bal‑

New York Times
lots counted, Likud had 29.15
update says
per cent of the vote, compared
Prime Minister
with 25.27 per cent for Blue andBenjamin
W hite, the Central Electoral
Netanyahu is
Committee said. Both Netanyahu,
poised to form
seeking a fifth term, and the
the next
government
leader of Blue and White, retired
Continued on page 4 despite tight race.
"We cannot allow this dangerous disease to make a
comeback here in New York City. We have to stop it
now," de Blasio said at a news conference. "We have a
situation now where children are in danger. We have
to take this seriously," he added. The order mandates
that all unimmunized children and adults living or
working in the area must receive vaccinations unless
they can prove a medical exemption applies. Those
who do not comply could be Continued on page 4
Harish Thakkar sworn
in AIA‑NY President
Harish Thakkar, associated for long
with the Association of Indians in
America, was sworn in President of
the New York chapter by Deputy
Consul General Shatrughna Sinha at
a ceremony at the Indian Consulate
on April 5. AIA‑NY is known for its
flagship event, the annual Deepavali
festival at the South Street Seaport.
(See story on page 5)
of Article 370
New Delhi: In its poll manifesto,
the ruling Bharatiya Janata party
(BJP) has vowed to abrog ate
Article 370 that gave special rights
to Jammu and Kashmir, making a
promise that provoked warnings
of a backlash in Kashmir.
“Nationalism is our inspiration,
economic development of the poor
and backward sections our philos‑
ophy, and good governance our
mantra,” Prime Minister Narendra
Modi said after releasing the elec‑
tion manifesto at BJP headquar‑
ters in New Delhi, as supporters
chanted “Modi, Modi!”
The Modi government is widely
expected to retain power after the
general election that starts on
Thursday, though with a smaller
mandate, hit by concerns over a
shortage of jobs and weak farm
prices.
The BJP manifesto pledged to
spend 100 trillion rupees ($1.44
trillion) on infrastructure in the
next five years to help create jobs
for the millions entering the work‑
force each year.
Pollsters say the BJPʼs re‑elec‑
tion bid got a boost from recent
hostilities with arch‑rival Pakistan
following Pulwama attack.
The BJP has consistently advo‑
cated an end to Kashmirʼs special
constitutional status (Article 370),
which prevents outsiders from
buying property there, arguing
that such laws have hindered its
Continued on page 4

FESTIVAL 2 EDUCATION 27 HUMOR 28 SPIRITUAL AWARENESS 30 excellence in journalism

 16 April 13-19, 2019 FESTIVAL TheSouthAsianTimes.info

V
aisakhi, the first day of
the Vaisakh month in the
Indian calendar which
falls on April 14, marks the
Punjabi new year. It welcomes
spring and in Punjab it is cele‑
brated as harvest festival of
abudnance. It also commemo‑
rates the formation of the Khalsa
under Guru Gobind Singh in
1699, which formalized Sikhism
as we know it today.
Yes, it was Vaisakhi day in
1699 when the Tenth Guru had
called for a big congregation in
Anandpur Sahib in Punjab.
Appearing at the massive gather‑
ing, Guru Gobind Singh bran‑
dished a naked sword and
repeatedly demanded a head.
After much trepidation, one by
one five brave men volunteered.
Each time he reappeared with a
bloody sword asking for another Marking the birth of the Khalsa, the annual Sikh Day
head. Finally he led the five out Parade is organized in New York City in April end with floats,
of the tent, alive and well and bands and martial arts display. The parade this time
celebrated them as the first five is slated for April 27.
ordained as the Khalsa. Then he influential to the Indian move‑ is taken out, not on
knelt and at his request they ini‑ ment against colonial rule. So it the exact Vaisakhi
tiated him as the sixth member has special significance for Day, but ona weekend
of the new Khalsa Brotherhood, Punjabis. towards the end of April. It is
True, Guru Nanak Dev founded Sikhism, but the way we know
which transcends caste and class. On Vaisakhi, gurdwaras are scheduled for April 27 this year.
Sikh religion today was formalized by Guru Gobind Singh
Incidentally, Vaisakhi was also decorated for kirtans. Sikhs visit For many Hindus, the festival is on Vaisakhi day in 1699 in a dramatic setting.
the day when the British empire and bathe in lakes or rivers their traditional new year, a har‑
officials committed the ghastly before visiting local gurdwaras. vest festival, an occasion to bathe known by various regional Bihuʼ celebrated in Assam, ʻNaba
Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Community fairs and nagar kir‑ in sacred rivers such as Ganges, names in India and has a sepa‑ Barshaʼ in West Bengal,
Amritsar on a peaceful gathering tan processions are held. In New Jhelum and Kaveri, and visit tem‑ rate set of rituals and traditions. ʻPuthanduʼ in Tamil Nadu and
of Hindus and Sikhs, an event York, a massive Sikh Day Parade ples. This festival in Hinduism is This day coincides with ʻRongali ʻPooram Vishuʼ in Kerala.

On Vaisakhi day in 1699 Guru Gobind Singh

formalized the Sikh religion as we know it today.

With best compliments from

Harpinder Singh ‘Bitta’ & Family

TheSouthAsianTimes.info
News18 holds a discussion in NJ on Indian elections
By Suchitra Srinivas
Jersey City, NJ: In the run up to
the Indian election, eminent pan‑
elists from India participated in a
lively discussion on the possible
outcomes of the worldʼs largest
democratic process at the first of a
series of ʻIndia Dialoguesʼ organ‑
ized by the CNN‑News 18ʼs inter‑
national team here on April 5 at
Hyatt Regency, Exchange Place.
ʻIndia Dialoguesʼ is planned as a
platform to help NRIs stay con‑
nected with India by actively par‑
ticipating in conversations on
issues and developments that are
shaping the country.
T he pane lists included BJP
leader Seshadri Chari, the highly
decorated Indian Army Lt. General
Syed Ata Hasnain and the political
commentator Ajoy Bose and senior
journalist Shreya Dhoundial was
the moderated.
With worldʼs largest democracy
getting ready to cast its votes, the
key question in everyoneʼs mind is,
will Narendra Modi be able to
secure a second term as PM?
The underlying view of the dis‑
cussion was that the Indian voter
Maryland judge blocks
Trump plan to add citizenship
question to 2020 Census
Washington: A federal judge in
Maryland ruled Friday against
the governmentʼs addition of a
citizenship question to the 2020
census.
The ruling, by Judge George J.
Hazel of the U.S. District Court
for the District of Maryland in
Greenbelt, MD, found that the
government violated administra‑
tive law. It is the third strike
against the Trump administra‑
tion over the question and, like
the other two, w ill like ly be
appealed to the Supreme Court.
Commerce Secretary Wilbur
Rossʼ March 2018 announce‑
ment of the question caused an
outcry among former Census
Bureau directors, statisticians,
civil rights organizations and
Democratic lawmakers.
Opponents said the late addi‑
tion, which did not undergo the
years of planning and testing
TRISTATE COMMUNITY
Moderator Shreya Dhoundial, Lt. General Syed Ata Hasnain, BJP leader Seshadri Chari,
and Ajoy Bose participating in first of the ʻIndia Dialoguesʼ series
is unpredictable. All the speakers
acknowledged that there was not
one particular factor like national‑
ism, economic agenda, leadership
charisma or caste politics that can
swing the vote this time.
In India, economy and develop‑
ment have not always won the
vote, observed Seshadri Chari. He
referred to excellent IT growth
under Chandrababu Naiduʼs in
Andhra Pradesh that could not
ensure is victory in 2004. So was
that new questions usually do,
would lead to undercounts
among immigrant communities
and af fect federal funding,
apportionment and redistricting.
They noted that the bureauʼs
own analysis found that adding
the question could jeopardize the
accuracy of the survey. The gov‑
ernment has said that it needs
the question to better enforce
the Voting Rights Act.
Fridayʼs ruling comes as the
Supreme Court is set to take up
the question April 23. Federal
judges in New York and
California earlier this year
ordered the government to stop
its plans to add it.
Atal Bihari Vajpayeeʼs economic
plan appreciated by world econo‑
mists including Dr Manmohan
Singh, but BJP was ousted from
power in 2004.
Lt. General Syed Ata Hasnain
observed that charisma of leaders
is powerful enough to appeal to
the Indian voters even if bread and
butter issues remain unresolved.
Modiʼs charisma is unquestionable
but charisma has not always gar‑
nered majority votes. Nationalism
India highest recipient of remittances
at $79 billion in 2018: World Bank
Washington: India retained its
position as the world's top recipi‑
ent of remittances with its diaspo‑
ra sending a whopping $79 billion
back home in 2018, the World
Bank said in a report on Monday.
India was followed by China
($67 billion), Mexico ($36 billion),
the Philippines ($34 billion), and
Egypt ($29 billion), the global
lender said.
With this, India has retained its
top spot on remittances, according
to the latest edition of the World
Bank's migration and development
brief.
Over the last three years, India
has registered a significant flow of
remittances from $62.7 billion in
2016 to $65.3 billion 2017.
"Remittances grew by more than
14 percent in India, where a flood‑
ing disaster in Kerala likely boosted
the financial help that migrants
sent to families," the bank said.
In Pakistan, remittance growth
was moderate (seven per cent), due
April 13-19, 2019
sentiment is high following the
Pulwama attack, but the Indian
voters keep changing their mind in
unexpected direct ions, he
observed.
The election is definitely swing‑
ing towards BJP, but the 2014
level of majority may elude Modi,
observed Ajoy Bose. He added that
a second Modi wave can still be
created by some last‑minute cam‑
paign promise of wide appeal for
the masses across the country. He
to significant declines in inflows
from Saudi Arabia, its largest remit‑
tance source. In Bangladesh, remit‑
tances showed a brisk uptick in
2018 (15 per cent).
According to the report, remit‑
tances to low‑and middle‑income
countries reached a record high of
$529 billion in 2018, an increase of
9.6 per cent over the previous
record high of $483 billion in
2017. Global remittances, which
include flows to high‑income coun‑
tries, reached $689 billion in 2018,
up from $633 billion in 2017, it
said. The Bank said, remittances to
3
acknowledged that regional politi‑
cal parties and their politics play a
major role in designing national
politics. Even when the macro poli‑
cy is good it may not become the
winning factor. Every regional
party now wants seats in parlia‑
ment and not like earlier time
when they saw an alliance with a
national party a bargain to win
local assembly elections.
On the coalition government sce‑
nario, Seshadri Chari observed that
there has to be comfortable major‑
ity for the BJP or the Congress to
ensure economic progress. In the
event the seats are split among
more diverse regional parties the
grand policies in the national
interest may suffer.
Sandeep Chakravorty, the Consul
General of India in New York, in
his inaugural address clarified that
the news of NRIs here being
allowed to vote is fake. They can
register online even when not
being present in the constituency
but they cannot vote online. To
cast your vote, you have to be
present in the constituency. Take a
break and visit India to cast your
vote, is the message.
South Asia grew 12 per cent to
$131 billion in 2018, outpacing
the six per cent growth in 2017.
"T he upsurge was driven by
stronger economic conditions in
the United States and a pick‑up in
oil prices, which had a positive
impact on outward remittances
from some GCC countries," it said.
The Gulf Cooperation Council
(GCC) is a regional inter‑govern‑
mental political and economic bloc
of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar,
Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
However, the Bank in its report
rued that the global average cost of
sending $200 remained high, at
around seven per cent in the first
quarter of 2019.
Reducing remittance costs to
three per cent by 2030 is a global
target under Sustainable
Deve lopment Goal (SDG) 10.7.
Remittance costs across many
African corridors and small islands
in the Pacific remain above 10 per
cent.
 4 April 13-19, 2019 TURN PAGE TheSouthAsianTimes.info

BJP's election manifesto vows
Clarification regarding to strip Kashmir of Article 370
Continued from page 1
said, “It has been made clear to Pakistan
that it cannot absolve itself of responsi‑
bility of a cross border terrorist attack in
over Likud, and public television net‑
work Kan said Gantz's advantage was 37‑
36.

voting by NRIs integration with the rest of India. “In the

last five years, we have made all neces‑
India. No attempt at creating an alibi for
its complicity in such attacks will suc‑
Kan reports that several parties, such
as Education Minister Naftali Bennett's

T
he Indian Consulate in a statement has refuted
misleading information in some sections of the
media, especially social media about the online vot‑
ing/voting in the Consulate or through proxy/mail by
Overseas (NRI) Indian Voters in the forthcoming general
election in India.
The Election Commission of India has clarified that no
such facility has been extended to NRIs. The current posi‑
tion with regard to voting by NRI voters in the general
election in India is reiterated as follows:
Under Section 20A of the Representation of People Act,
1950 and rules made thereunder, every citizen of India:
(a) whose name is not included in the electoral roll; (b)
who has not acquired the citizenship of any other coun‑
try; and (c) who is absenting from his place of ordinary
residence in India owing to his employment, education or
otherwise outside India, is entitled to have his/her name
registered in the electoral roll as “Overseas electors” in
the constituency in oneʼs place of residence in India as
mentioned in oneʼs passport is located. The application
for this purpose can be filed in the prescribed form in per‑
son before the concerned Electoral Registration Officer or
sent by post or can be filed online on the website of Chief
Electoral Of ficer of the concerned state or website of
Election Commission of India (www.eci.gov.in). After get‑
ting enrolled in the electoral roll, such person though will
not be issued Elector Photo Identity Card but can cast
oneʼs vote in India during Assembly or Parliamentary
election at the respective polling station after showing
his/her valid original Indian passport. However, provision
for alternative options for voting for overseas Indian elec‑
tions is under consideration.
US LABELS IRAN'S
REVOLUTIONARY GUARDS
AS TERRORIST ORG
Washington: President Donald Trump on Monday
announced the United States is designating Iran's elite
military force, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,
a terrorist organization.
Trump said in a statement that the "unprecedented"
move "recognizes the reality that Iran is not only a
State Sponsor of Terrorism, but that the IRGC actively
participates in, finances, and promotes terrorism as a
tool of statecraft.
sary ef forts to ensure peace in Jammu
and Kashmir through decisive actions
and a firm policy,” the manifesto said.
“We are committed to overcome all
obstacles in the way of development and
provide adequate financial resources to
all the regions of the state.”
The party also reiterated its long‑held
desire to abolish Kashmirʼs autonomous
status. BJP supporters have sought the
removal, expressing anger at many
Kashmirisʼ resistance to rule by India,
which, for three decades, has battled an
armed insurgency in the region also
claimed by Pakistan.
Repeal would bring widespread unrest,
Kashmiri political leaders warned.
“Let them do it and it will pave the way
for our azadi,” Farooq Abdullah, presi‑
dent of Kashmirʼs National Conference
party, told an election rally, referring to
freedom for the region. “They are wrong.
We will fight against it.” Mohammad
Yousuf Tarigami, the leader of a left
party in Kashmir, warned of “disastrous
and unimaginable repercussions”.
Imran sees better chance
of peace talks with India
if Modi wins
Continued from page 1
feeling”. Meanwhile, the dramatic
announcement by Pakistanʼs foreign
minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi of
ʻimminent Indian attackʼ has not elicited
the kind of international concern
Islamabad may have hoped for. He said
over the weekend that India was plan‑
ning to attack Pakistan between April
16‑20. But the Indian Ministry of
External Affairs (MEA) has not heard of
any concern from the international com‑
munity, not even the Chinese govern‑
ment. Describing Qureshiʼs statement as
“irresponsible and preposterous”, MEA
said, “India reserves the right to respond
firmly and decisively to any cross border
terrorist attack.”
The strongly‑worded MEA statement
ceed. Pakistan needs to take credible and
irreversible steps against terrorism oper‑
ating from all territories under its con‑
trol rather than making hysterical state‑
ments to obfuscate the core issue ...”
On the issue of the downed Pakistani F‑
16 aircraft by the Indian Air Force,
sources confirmed that India had only
asked the US to verify end‑user agree‑
ments with Pakistan on the use of F‑16s
against India. There is no request by
India for the US to “count” the F‑16s with
Pakistan, a fact corroborated by the
Pentagon telling journalists that they
“were not aware” of any such request.
Indian sources however said according
to their intelligence, Pakistan had asked
US military personnel stationed at the
Sargodha air base (which houses some of
the F‑16s) to leave a day before the clash
with India on Feb 27, and were only
allowed back several weeks later. That
confirmed for them that F‑16s were
indeed used against India. Indian offi‑
cials remain confident on both the attack
on the terror camp in Balakot as well as
downing of an F‑16 belonging to the
Pakistan air force.
Netanyahu, challenger both
claim victory in Israeli elections
Continued from page 1
Gen. Benny Gantz, claimed victory based
on the first exit polls published after the
voting ended at 10.00 pm local time
Tuesday.
While all of the exit polls except that of
Channel 13 television ‑‑ which deemed
the race too close to call ‑‑ point to an
advantage for Blue and White, the osten‑
sible lead was so narrow that it remained
unclear whether Gantz would be able to
form a government, Efe reported.
Blue and White was set to win 33 seats
in the 120‑seat parliament, compared
with 27 for Likud, according to i24 tele‑
vision.
The poll cited by Channel 12 showed
Blue and White with a margin of 37‑33
New Right, the far‑right Zehut and the
centrist Gesher, fell short of the 3.25 per
cent minimum required to enter parlia‑
ment.
"We won! The Israeli public has had
their say!" Blue and White said. "These
elections have a clear winner and a clear
loser. Netanyahu promised 40 seats and
lost. The president can see the picture
and should call on the winner to form
the next government. There is no other
option!"
The prime minister, however, pro‑
claimed a triumph for the right.
"The right‑wing bloc led by Likud won
a clear victory. I thank the citizens of
Israel for your trust. I will start assem‑
bling a right‑wing government with our
natural partners this very evening,"
Netanyahu said on Twitter.
NYC declares measles emer‑
gency to curb spread in Brooklyn
Continued from page 1
guilty of misdemeanor violations and
incur fines. Measles is a highly conta‑
gious disease and can cause pneumonia,
encephalitis (swelling of the brain) and
death.
Tuesday's order follows another decree
by the city's Health Department, issued a
day earlier, that any yeshivas in
Williamsburg that continue to defy the
mandatory exclusion of all unvaccinated
children will immediately be issued a vio‑
lation and face fines and possible school
closures.
In Williamsburg, the immunization rate
is particularly low among the Hasidic
and Orthodox Jewish communities, caus‑
ing the virus "to increase at an alarming
rate," according to the Health
Department.
The vast majority of the city's cases are
children under 18 years of age. In most
cases, the patients were unvaccinated or
incompletely vaccinated. While no one
has died, a handful have been admitted
to intensive care.

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TheSouthAsianTimes.info TRISTATE April 13-19, 2019 5

Harish Thakkar takes over Humanitarian work important element

as President of AIA‑NY of India’s diplomacy: Amb. Shringla
New York: T he Association of
Indians in America (AIA), New York
chapter installed its new Executive
Committee with Harish Thakkar as
president at the Indian Consulate
here on April 5.
The oath taking ceremony was
graced by Chief Guest Consul
General Sandeep Chakravorty,
Deputy CG Shatrughna Sinha, Rep
Grace Meng, State Senator John Liu
and Air India Regional Manager,
Bhuvana Rao besides Past
Presidents of AIA, community lead‑
ers and prominent guests from the
tristate area. Congresswoman Meng
congratulated the new AIA team,
and reiterated her support to the
Indian community. John Liu pre‑
sented a proclamation to Harish
Thakkar and promised to support
upcoming AIA events.
AIA‑NY is known for its flagship
event, the annual Deepavali festival
at the South Street Seaport. In his
acceptance speech, Harish Thakkar,
pointed out that this is the biggest
Diwali celebration outside India and
he wants to be “instrumental in
bringing our community together
through AIA, and pass the legacy of
our culture and heritage for future
generations”.
Thakkar, who has been associated
with AIA for the past 14 years,
thanked NY Senator John Liu for
agreeing to host an AIA Diwali
event at Albany.
In his vision for AIA he talked of
enhancing education based projects
on AI (artificial intelligence) to help
young girls in the community as
well as douing more cultural and
Harish Thakkar has been associ‑
ated with Association of Indians
in America for the past 14 years
sports events with Desi Next, AIAʼs
wing for young adults.
AIA has been doing kids Diwali
ce lebration in Queens Public
Library for last 8 years. “Our vision
is to expand this kids Diwali event
in Nassau County too,” he said.
AIA will also organize health
related lectures and seminars in the
community as the organization
enjoys great support from physi‑
cians of the AAPI community.
Harish Thakkar has also been
associated with the BAPS Sanstha, a
spiritual, volunteer‑driven organiza‑
tion dedicated to improving society
through individual growth by fos‑
tering the Hindu ideals of faith,
unity, and selfless service. The New
York Chapter of AIA was estab‑
lished in 1968 and is well known
for its social, cultural and educa‑
tional activities. It has been holding
the Deepavali festival since 1987
where the grand finale, watched by
over a million people in the tristate
area, is the live fireworks.
New York: Humanitarian work is an
important element of Indiaʼs diplo‑
macy, although it is often overshad‑
owed by its strategic and defence
aspects, according to Indiaʼs
Ambassador Harsh Vardhan
Shringla.
Humanitarian assistance plays an
important role in Indiaʼs diplomatic
outreach to other countries, he said
last Thursday here at a seminar on
“India for Humanity”, held as part of
the year‑long commemoration of
Mahatma Gandhiʼs 150th birth
anniversary. The seminar was cen‑
tered on the example of the ʻJaipur
Footʼ in promoting the humanitari‑
an element of Indian diplomacy
through a collaboration of the
External Af fairs Ministry and an
NGO behind the prostheses.
The Jaipur Foot, which some have
called a “marvel of Gandhian engi‑
neering” for their simplicity yet
ef fectiveness, were developed in
Jaipur by Bhagwan Mahaveer
Viklang Sahayata Samiti, which con‑
tinues to finance their manufacture
and distribution.
“Jaipur Foot extends Gandhiʼs
message of compassion,” Shringla
said referring to the organizationʼs
work of providing free prosthetic
limbs to victims around the world.
Diplomats from Bangladesh and
Malawi acknowledged the Jaipur
Footʼs humanitarian work in their
countries and elsewhere.
Malawiʼs Deputy Permanent
Representative to the UN, Lot
Dzonzi, said that while celebrating
Gandhi, “one of the greatest human
beings”, it is fitting to recall that
Ambassador Harsh Vardhan Shringla felicitating NYPD Captain
Stanley George at the event in the Indian Consulate in New York, as
Consul General Sandeep Chakravorty looks on.
“Jaipur Foot is the arm that India people around the world have bene‑
extended to my country to touch fited from the prostheses programs
500 people.” It has changed the since 1975, and 73 camps have
lives of those who came crawling or been held in 20 countries to help
stumbling with canes to the camps people regain their mobility. During
but walked out straight, he said. the year of Mahatma Gandhiʼs
Bangladesh Consul General Sadia 150th birth anniversary, Jaipur
Faizunnesa said that the Jaipur Foot Foot will be holding 12 internation‑
organization is changing the lives of al camps, he added. Five of them
underprivileged people in her coun‑ have already been held in Nepal,
try.Shringla said that India had Vietnam, Myanmar, Iraq and
flown plane‑loads of aid packages Malawi, and three are underway in
and other supplies for families of Tanzania, Egypt and Senegal.
Rohingya refugees sheltering in Mahatma Gandhiʼs great‑great‑
Bangladesh and was setting up a grandson Paritosh Prasad said that
hospital for them. there was no better way of demon‑
He recalled that after the end of strating his lessons of compassion
the Sri Lanka conflict, India had than the work of Jaipur Foot organi‑
sent teams to defuse and remove sation. Indiaʼs Consul‑General
mines planted there and held camps Sandeep Chakravorty said that
for those who had lost their feet or Jaipur Foot “was Indiaʼs only inter‑
legs to be fitted with Jaipur Foot national brand” because it is geo‑
prostheses. graphically distributed so widely
The chairman of Jaipur Foot USA, and it brings together diplomacy
Prem Bhandari said that 1.8 million and philanthropy.

Photo show at UN for 2nd Dr. Datta conferred LI Business News

European Games in Minsk Healthcare Achievement Award
Oceanside, NY: Prominent nal and colorectal proce‑
surgical oncologist Rajiv dures; tracheal and
Ravi and Ranju Batra Datta, MD, was recently pre‑ esophageal surgeries.
receiving tickets for
sented Long Island Business A Castle‑Connolly New
the games from CEO
News Achievement in Health York Metro Area Top Doctor
2nd European Games
George Katulin, in the Care Award for his contribu‑ for 13 consecutive years, Dr.
presence of Belarus tions to ensure the we ll‑ Datta is actively involved in
Ambassador Valentin being of the Long Island numerous clinical trials that
Rybakov, Belarus community. are both federally and pri‑
Deputy Foreign Dr. Datta is chair of the vately funded.
Minister Andrei department of surgery and Under Dr. Dattaʼs leader‑
Dapkiunas, and medical director of the ship, the Gertrude & Louis
Under Secretary Gertrude & Louis Feil Cancer Feil Cancer Center has
General (Counter‑ Center at South Nassau evolved into one of the
Terrorism) Vladimir Communities Hospital. He Surgical oncologist Northeast corridorʼs pre‑
Voronkov. Rajiv Datta, MD
has the unusual distinction miere providers of compas‑
of holding three fellowships, as a fellow of sionate advanced cancer care. Treating
the prestigious International College of approximately 1,500 patients annually,
United Nations: CEO of Minsk European Games Belarus in East Europe, from June 21 to 30, Surgeons, the American College of the center is equipped with three of the
Organizing Committee George Katulin, in the 2019. Eminent Attorney Ravi Batra and Diwali Surgeons and the Royal College of most effective technologies used to treat
presence of Deputy Foreign Minister of Belarus Stamp Project Chairperson Ranju Batra were Surgeons. and eradicate cancer: the Varian Novalis
Andrei Dapkiunas and UN Under Secretary presented tickets to attend the Opening His areas of expertise include cancers of Tx™, da Vinci® Surgical System and
General Vladimir Voronkov, opened a special Ceremony of the Games in Minsk. Present on the colon/rectum, endocrine system, Gamma Knife® Perfexion.
photo presentation at the UN headquarters in the occasion, among others, was India's breast and head and neck; soft tissue sar‑ Dr. Datta is a resident of Muttontown,
New York on April 3 in the run‑up to the 2nd Permanent Representative to the UN, coma and melanoma; upper gastrointesti‑ NY.
European Games to be held in Minsk, capital of Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin.
 6 April 13-19, 2019 TRISTATE TheSouthAsianTimes.info

NRIs exhorted to call ʻIt is important to engage

family and friends in
India to vote BJP
Main speakers at the meeting called to ensure Narendra Modi
returns as PM.
By SATimes Team
Hicksville NY: BJP supporters
in Long Island held a meeting
on April 6 to explain why
Narendra Modi deserves a sec‑
ond term as PM and what
Indian Americans can do to
ensure that.
At the well‑attended meeting
moderated by Jagdish Sewhani
at Apna Ghar in Hicksville,
speakers pointed to Modi gov‑
ernmentʼs record on national
security (actions taken against
Pakistan) and daring steps like
d e m o n e t i z a t i o n a n d G S T.
Development was mentioned
in the past 5 years but the
staggering number of unem‑
ployed was skipped. Too much
emphasis on the incumbent
regime doing great for Hindus
and Hindutva was disliked by a
with diverse population
in our communityʼ
An Interview with the
Town of Hempstead
Supervisor Hon. Laura
Gillen by Shaker
Nelanuthala
Shaker Nelanuthala: Hello Laura.
I'm a Contributing Editor to the
South Asian times. The organizers
of SAAWA (South Asian American
Womenʼs Alliance), Prof. Subash
Midha, Dr. Anila Midha and their
board members would like to thank
couple of people privately and
you for providing the Merrick Golf
publicly as being non‑inclu‑
Course Club House for the 4th
s i v e. A c a l l w a s m a d e f o r
Annual SAAWA Science Fair
ensuring that BJP led NDA
Competition. What are your com‑
front returns with a 400+
ments about the competition that
majority in Lok Sabha with
concluded on March 31?
545 seats, which is in serious
Town Supervisor Laura Gillen:
doubt because most opinion
T his is an incredible event put
polls are giving the incumbent
together by the team! You can tell
front a thin majority. That is
it's the culmination of hours of
why Animesh Goenka warned
work put in by Anila and Subash
the BJP supporters not to
and their dedication to inspiring the
become complacent like in
young minds. Especially those that
2004 when India was shining
are interested in science is com‑
under Atal Bihari Vajpayee but
mendable. They are really doing
that was not good enough to
amazing things here. It's such a
win the election.
great gathering of students not just
So, the actionable point that
from one little geographic area, but
emerged in the meeting was
from all over Nassau County as well
that Indians living in America
as from different schools. For exam‑
should call (also whatsapp, use
ple, I was very impressed to meet
social media) to their near and
two young ladies, who are from
dear ones in India to vote and
completely dif ferent schools, one
support BJP.
from Plainview School District and
gent voices with maybe a different
perspective and contributing to
local politics as well as to events
like these here, today.
Shaker: Looks like you have a re‑
election this year. I want to wish
you luck in your race and I just
want to thank you for taking time to
talk to the South Asian Times and
for coming to this event.
Laura: Thank you, it is important
to engage with diverse population
in our community. We have an
Indian flag‑raising each year, and of
many cultures that make up the
Town of Hempstead. That's some‑
thing that was very important for
me to do as a Supervisor. I really
want to be focused on the strength
another from a private school work‑
of diversity instead of just looking
ing together on a project combining
to the favorite insiders, which is
their interests and now both are
what historically the Town of
going to Harvard together ‑ what a
Hempstead has been doing. We are
great story!
putting good Government initiatives
Shaker: Absolutely. Next, can you
and I'm hoping it'll be a good
comment on the contributions of
November.
South Asians and particularly
Shaker: We appreciate your pres‑
Indian Americans in the Town of
ence here and at Indiaʼs Republic
Hempstead?
Day at the Town of Hempstead
Laura: We have a growing Indian
which was covered by this newspa‑
and South Asian community in the
per. Please be in touch with the
Town of Hempstead. With the elec‑
community and let us know what
tion of our state Senator Kevin
we can do for you. Thanks Laura.
Thomas, the first Indian‑American
Shaker Nelanuthala is an IT &
in the state senate, we really notice
Property Management (PM) con‑
that this community is politically
sultant and an editorial contributor
engaged‑‑see their civic responsibil‑
to the SA Times. He lives on Long
ities, which is amazing. So, it's real‑
Island, New York. Please send any
ly great to have these really intelli‑
comments to sn1961@yahoo.com

IN BRIEF

Green Card, visa holders must carry 1st annual Summer School
document, or else be fined, jailed on Languages of Jainism
W at University of Toronto
hile most Green Card holders and ty days, or both.ʼ Another sub‑section of the
visa holders, like those on H‑1B, rule says: ʻNotwithstanding any other provi‑

L‑1, J or F‑1, H4 visa, and even
those having work permits know itʼs imper‑
ative to carry that piece of document and
related papers when traveling in and out of
the country, many may not know that itʼs
also legally necessary to carry that piece of
evidence at all times within USA, or face the
risk of being fined or imprisoned, or even
both. The USCIS rule says: ʻEvery alien,
eighteen years of age and over, shall at all
times carry with him and have in his per‑
sonal possession any certificate of alien
registration or alien registration receipt
card issued to him pursuant to subsection
(d). Any alien who fails to comply with the
provisions of this subsection shall be guilty
of a misdemeanor and shall upon convic‑
tion for each offense be fined not to exceed
$100 or be imprisoned not more than thir‑
sion of law, the Attorney General is author‑
ized to require any alien to provide the
alienʼs social security account number for
purposes of inclusion in any record of the
alien maintained by the Attorney General or
the Service.ʼ
With a large‑scale immigration crack‑
down on undocumented foreigners immi‑
nent after President Trumpʼs new executive
orders, itʼs important for all documented
residents in the US to keep proof of their
legal status in the country.
And for those in the pipeline for a Green
Card, a misdemeanor charge could have
terrible repercussions when it comes to
being adjudicated for legal permanent resi‑
dent status. The same applies for Green
Card holders who wish to become US
citizen.
T
he First Annual Summer School
on Languages of Jainism will
take place at the University of
Toronto July 29‑August. It will focus on
reading and contextualizing the pra‑
bandha literature, a rich archive of Jain
histories, biographies, and stories com‑
posed mainly in Sanskrit and Prakrit.
These narratives often display a histori‑
cal consciousness rarely seen in other
genres of Sanskrit literature, making
them essential resources for the social
and religious history of the period.
This yearʼs Summer School will sur‑
vey the breadth of themes, figures and
places in the Jain prabandha literature
and consider the historiographical chal‑
lenges and potential rewards of writing
the history of late medieval India using
these sources. The workshop will be led
by Steven M. Vose, the Bhagwan
Mahavir Assistant Professor of Jain
Studies and Director of the Jain Studies
Prog ram at Florida Internat ional
University in Miami. Invited faculty
include Shalin Jain and Sarah Pierce
Taylor.
There are no fees associated with
attending the workshop itself, and
room and board will be provided gratis
to a limited number of initial partici‑
pants.
For registration details and additional
informat ion or inquiries contact
Luther Obrock (luther.obrock@utoron‑
to.ca)
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
US' H‑1B visa reaches limit for 2020 within
days of new financial year
Washington, DC: The US Citizenship and
Immigration Services (USCIS) said it has
reached Congressionally‑mandated 65,000
H‑1B visa cap for the fiscal year 2020, after
it started receiving the applications for the
most sought‑after work visa among foreign,
including Indian, professionals. The USCIS,
the federal agency mandated with task of
approving such applications, on Friday said
"it has received a sufficient number of peti‑
tions projected as needed to reach the con‑
gressionally‑mandated 65,000 H‑1B visa
regular cap for fiscal year 2020."
The fiscal year begins October 1, 2019
and the USCIS started receiving the visa
petitions from April 1. However, the agency
did not reveal the number of petitions
received by it in the first five days.
The USCIS, said, it will next determine if it
has received a suf ficient number of peti‑
tions to meet the 20,000 H‑1B visa US
advanced degree exemption, known as the
master's cap.
Indian journal publisher fined
$50 million for duping academics
New York: An Indian journal publisher
and his companies have been fined over $
50 million in the US for making "decep‑
tive claims" to academics about the
nature of their work and taking millions
of dollars from aspiring researchers and
writers.
Srinubabu Gedela of Andhra Pradesh
and his companies OMICS Group Inc.,
iMedPub LLC, Conference Series LLC,
have been ordered by the US District
Court for the District of Nevada to pay the
amount to resolve the charges brought
against them by America's consumer pro‑
tection agency ‑ Federal Trade
Commission (FTC).
"These publishing companies lied about
their academic journals and took millions
of dollars from aspiring researchers and
writers," said Andrew Smith, Director of
the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection.
We're pleased with the court's strong
order holding these companies and its
owner responsible for the damage they
caused," Smith said.
The court issued the summary judg‑
ment order on March 29.
In its 2016 complaint, the FTC alleged
that "OMICS, iMedPub, Conference Series
and their owner Srinubabu Gedela adver‑
tised hundreds of online academic jour‑
nals and international conferences for sci‑
entists and medical professionals, and
deceptively claimed that their journals
provided authors with rigorous peer
review and had editorial boards made up
of prominent academics".
In reality, many articles were published
with little to no peer review, and many
individuals represented to be editors had
not agreed to be affiliated with the jour‑
nals, the FTC said in a statement.
The FTC further alleged that the defen‑
dants represented that their journals had
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
The agency said it will reject and return
visa fees for all unselected cap‑subject peti‑
tions that are not prohibited multiple fil‑
ings. It will continue to accept and process
petitions that are otherwise exempt from
the cap.
Petitions filed for current H‑1B workers
who have been counted previously against
the cap, and who still retain their cap num‑
ber, are exempt from the FY 2020 H‑1B,
the USCIS said.
It did not say if it would resort to comput‑
erized draw of lots as was the case in the
last several years.
Srinubabu Gedela made "deceptive
claims" to academics about the nature
of their work and took millions of
dollars from aspiring researchers
and writers.
been accepted by prominent academic
indexing services such as the National
Institute of Health (NIH)'s "PubMed
Central".
In fact, the NIH had refused to index the
defendants' journals and demanded that
they cease representing that the defen‑
dants' journals were associated with
PubMed.
An article in The New York Times quot‑
ed Srinubabu Gedela's attorney Kishore
Vattikoti as saying in an email response
to the court order that "It's quite surpris‑
ing for us that court has passed an order
against defendants in this case without
calling for a trial which is unjustifiable
and violation of natural justice."
Vattikoti said the publisher would
appeal, the report said.
The FTC also alleged that Srinubabu
Gedela and his companies failed to prop‑
erly tell authors who submitted papers
This is the first season of H‑1B petitions
after the USCIS announced enforcing new
rules for the most sought‑after US work
visa applications for foreign professionals.
The new rules give preferences to those
who have completed their post‑graduation
degree course from any US educational
institutions.
This year the USCIS has suspended the
electronic registration requirement for the
fiscal year 2020 cap season to complete
user testing and ensure the system and
process are fully functional.
Under the new system, the USCIS first
selects H‑1B petitions submitted on behalf
of all beneficiaries, including those that
may be eligible for the advanced degree
exemption.
Thereafter, the USCIS will select from the
remaining eligible petitions, a number pro‑
jected to reach the advanced degree exemp‑
tion. Changing the order in which the
USCIS counts these allocations will likely
for consideration that they would charge
the authors significant publishing fees.
They also failed to allow authors to with‑
draw their articles from submission, mak‑
ing their research ineligible for publica‑
tion in other journals.
Finally, the complaint alleged that to
promote their scientific conferences, the
defendants deceptively used the names of
prominent researchers as conference pre‑
senters when in fact many of those
researchers had not agreed to participate
in the events.
In November 2017, a federal court
granted a preliminary injunction request‑
ed by the FTC, temporarily halting the
deceptive practices of these academic
journal publishers.
In the summary judgment decision, the
court found that "the defendants violated
the FTC Act by making deceptive claims
regarding their academic journals and sci‑
entific conferences, and by failing to ade‑
quately disclose their publishing fees".
The resulting final order prohibits
Srinubabu Gedela and his companies
from making misrepresentations regard‑
ing their academic journals and confer‑
ences, including that specific persons are
editors of their journals or have agreed to
participate in their conferences, that their
journals engage in peer review, that their
journals are included in any academic
journal indexing service, or the extent to
which their journals are cited.
It also requires that the defendants
clearly and conspicuously disclose all
costs associated with submitting or pub‑
lishing articles in their journals.
The order also requires the defendants
to obtain express written consent from
any person the defendants represent to
be associated with their academic jour‑
nals or scientific conferences. (PTI)
April 13-19, 2019 7
increase the number of petitions for benefi‑
ciaries with a master's or higher degree
from a US institution of higher education to
be selected under the H‑1B numerical allo‑
cations.
The USCIS says that the change will result
in an estimated increase of up to 16 per
cent (or 5,340 workers) in the number of
selected petitions for H‑1B beneficiaries
with a master's degree or higher from a US
institution of higher education.
"These simple and smart changes are a
positive benefit for employers, the foreign
workers they seek to employ, and the
agency's adjudicators, helping the H‑1B
visa program work better," USCIS Director
L Francis Cissna had said in a statement.
"The US employers seeking to employ
foreign workers with a US master's or high‑
er degree will have a greater chance of
selection in the H‑1B lottery in years of
excess demand for new H‑1B visas," Cissna
said. (PTI)
Kamala Harris'
campaign raises
$12m for 2020 bid
Washington, DC:
US Democratic
presidential can‑
didate Senator
Kamala Harris,
who is of Indian
and Jamaican
descent, has
announced that
her campaign
raised $12 mil‑
lion in the first
quarter of 2019
from more than
218,000 individual contributions.
Harris, who is seeking the Democratic presidential
nomination, became the second major candidate to
announce her first‑quarter fundraising total after
South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg said he
raised over $7 million in the first quarter, according to
CNN. "A nationwide network of hundreds of thousands
of grassroots supporters has stepped up to lay the
foundation for a winning campaign," Harris' campaign
manager Juan Rodriguez said in a statement on
Monday cited by the Hill magazine.
"This is a campaign powered by the people, focused
on making healthcare a right, putting $500 a month in
the pockets of working Americans, and giving every
public school teacher in America a raise. We're excited
by the support we're already seeing."
The campaign's announcement came after Sunday's
Federal Election Commission quarterly fundraising
deadline. In a news release, Harris said she had
received 218,000 individual contributions during the
first quarter and 98 per cent of those contributions
came in amounts smaller than $100.
Harris' aides said that more than 99 per cent of her
current donors can contribute again without hitting
the limit. Harris did not disclose how much she has
spent during the first three months of the year, nor
how much cash she has remaining in the bank for the
long primary fight. (IANS)
8 April 13-19, 2019 NATIONAL TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Indian‑origin actors creating Actor Prashantt Guptha goes from

waves on American shows
New Delhi: From Kunal Nayyar to Lilly
Singh and Mindy Kaling, many actors of
Indian origin are creating waves on
American television shows.
Here are some of them:
* Kunal Nayyar: He rose to fame as
Rajesh Ramayan Koothrappali or Raj on
the show "The Big Bang Theory". Kunal, a
British‑born Indian actor, was also seen in
shows like "Prison Break" and "The Mindy
Project."
* Kal Penn: The "Harold & Kumar" actor
is known for portraying Dr. Lawrence
Kutner on the television programme
"House." In 2016, he began playing Seth
Wright in the political drama "Designated
Survivor" and later served as host of the
game show "Superhuman."
* Hasan Minhaj: The Indian‑American
comedian found global fame when he
gave words to his story through the stage
production turned comedy special
"Homecoming King". After doing some
gigs, Hasan got his big break when he
became a part of "The Daily Show." Hasan
recently received a backlash from netizens
over his stint on Netflix show "Patriot Act
with Hasan Minhaj" in which he took a dig
at Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
* Lilly Singh: Lilly Singh, Canadian born
with Indian roots, is popular across the
globe as Superwoman. She rose to fame
with her YouTube channel. In 2017, she
was ranked 10th on the Forbes list of the
world's highest paid YouTube stars. On
the small screen, Lilly will be hosting a
new late night talk show for NBC titled "A
Little Late with Lilly Singh."
* Mindy Kaling: An Indo‑American
actress, comedian, writer and producer,
Mindy played Kelly Kapoor in "The Office"
sitcom from 2005 to 2013. Recognition
for her work on "The Office" include a
Primetime Emmy Award nomination for
Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series in
2010. She gained wider attention for cre‑
ating, writing, producing and starring in
"The MindyProject" comedy series.
* Aziz Ansari: The Indian‑American actor
is known for his role as Tom Haverford on
the series "Parks and Recreation", and as
creator and star of the Netflix series
"Master of None". Ansari began his career
performing stand‑up comedy in New York
City in the mid‑2000s while attending
New York University. In 2007, he created
and starred in the MTV sketch comedy
show "Human Giant", which ran for two
seasons.
* Padma Lakshmi: Born in Chennai,
Padma Lakshmi has been the host of the
US cooking competition programme "Top
Chef" since season two in 2006, for which
she received an Emmy nomination in
2009 for Outstanding Reality Host.
* Sendhil Ramamurthy: Born to Tamil
parents, Sendhil is best known for his role
as geneticist Mohinder Suresh in the sci‑fi
drama "Heroes". He has also been a part of
shows like "Grey's Anatomy", "Numb3rs",
"CSI: Miami", "Beauty & the Beast", "Family
Guy" and "New Amsterdam."
* Punam Patel: The actress is set as a
series regular opposite Kenan Thompson
and Andy Garcia in single‑camera comedy
pilot "The Kenan Show." She will reported‑
ly play Erica, Kenan's loyal friend and co‑
worker. (IANS)
fanboy to co‑star with screen icon
Mithun Chakraborty
New York: This young actor who
has previously impressed in hit
films like Neerja and Issaq and
recently cast in a Hollywood film
called A New Christmas, was
born and raised in New York.
Circa 1988, he recalls his first
concert experience wherein he
walked into a stadium full of
screaming fans to watch his idol
Mithun Chakraborty perform to
his chartbusters. It was around
the time Disco Dancer and a
stream of his re leases had
become hits and he had become
a dancing sensation. "Mithun da
became a superstar with Disco
Dancer, and I the 6‑year‑old
"I first saw him perform at Madison Square Garden,"
says Prashantt Guptha who will be seen in upcoming
went to see him perform live at
'The Tashkent Files'
Madison Square Garden in New
York, same place where Michael Jackson when after a particular scene, the legend
had performed a few weeks earlier. I walked came up to him and showered praise in front
into a stadium of 20,000 people and he was of everyone. "That moment especially felt
dancing to Krishna Dharti Pe Aaja Tu. I did‑ good because I got it all wrong the first time
n't know then that 30 years later the around (laughs)."
moment would still be vivid in my head, and The Tashkent Files is a present‑day politi‑
I would do a movie with him," he says. cal investigation into the yet mysterious
When asked about the experience, Prashantt death of India's 2nd Prime Minister, Lal
reflects that working with 'dada' (as every‑ Bahadur Shastri. The stellar cast features
one fondly calls him) was great fun and deep stalwarts like Mithun Chakbraborty,
learning. About the icon he says, "He treated Naseeruddin Shah, Pankaj Tripathi, Mandira
me with so much affection, never once made Bedi, Pallavi Joshi, Shweta Basu Prasad, and
me feel like a new kid or nobody." directed by Vivek Agnihotri who himself is a
The conversations included politics, an very prominent political speaker, author and
area where the senior actor is passionate, as filmmaker.
opposed to Prashantt self‑claiming his igno‑ Apart from this, Prashantt will soon be
rance. Beyond that, they spoke about the seen in two shorts films, A bit of a loner and
struggles of Mumbai, family, and Prashantt Girl in Amber and is currently shooting a
proudly remembers the first day of the shoot feature in the Jammu territory of India.

Animus Films to adapt Ashok Rajamani's

acclaimed memoir for big screen
By Vijay Gopalan
Los Angeles: Animus Films has optioned
rights to ʻThe Day My Brain Exploded: A
True Storyʼ (Algonquin Books), the hit
memoir by author Ashok Rajamani, with
plans to adapt it for the big screen.
One of the first Indian American mem‑
oirs of its kind, ʻT he Day My Brain
Exploded: A True Storyʼ tells, with dark
comedy, the astounding tale of Ashokʼs
survival and recovery from an unexpect‑
ed, near‑fatal brain hemorrhage at the
age of twenty‑five, a catastrophic event
Ashok Rajamani which explodes not only his brain, but
the world around him. On his road back
to life, Ashok has to relearn even the
most basic of things, of piecing together
a past, of reclaiming a life, of dealing
with the rage that results from such
extreme brain injury, and of coping with
the societal prejudice inflicted on those
with handicaps.
With humor and irreverence, Ashokʼs
memoir shows how the will to survive
can triumph even the most daunting
experiences, all while tackling issues
such as racism, disability, illness, and the
stigmas and perceptions surrounding
afflictions of the brain and mind.
Animus Films is responsible for many
acclaimed motion pictures, released by
studios such as Paramount Pictures and
IFC Films. Some of these movies include
ʻThe Man Who Knew Infinityʼ (Dev Patel,
Jeremy Irons) and ʻThe Wordsʼ (Bradley
Cooper, Zoe Saldana, Dennis Quaid).
Said Ashok, “Animus is known for inde‑
pendent, prestigious, groundbreaking
films. I am honored to have this amazing
production company bring my life story
to the big screen.
Nothing like eating popcorn in a dark
theater while watching your brain
explode in technicolor.”
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
UAE to issue equivalency for
all Indian degrees
Abu Dhabi: In a huge relief for many expats,
the UAE Ministry of Education has agreed to
issue equivalency for all Indian degrees that
match the set criteria, the Indian embassy
here announced on Sunday.
Indian Ambassador to the United Arab
Emirates Navdeep Singh Suri said the
Ministry has agreed to accept Indian academ‑
ic and professional certificates after the
embassy issued clarifications on the issue of
the external and internal marks mentioned in
mark lists.
"There was lack of clarity about the fact
that some of our universities issue both inter‑
nal and external mark sheets as part of their
degrees. These were not accepted by the UAE
side, leading to considerable dif ficulty for
those seeking jobs and even for some teach‑
ers already holding jobs," the envoy told
Indian High Commissioner in UK Mrs Ruchi Ghanashyam presenting Letter of
Credence to Queen Elizabeth in London, on March 27th.
Changes in UAE visa
to benefit Indian
expats' kin too
Abu Dhabi: The United Arab Emirates (UAE)
has announced new visa guidelines as per
which family members of foreign citizens,
including Indians, working in the country
will now be able to get an "expat visa" if the
working relative fulfils an income criteria.
The UAE Cabinet on Sunday adopted a
decision to amend provisions of the resolu‑
tion on sponsoring of foreign workers to
their families in the country, WAM news
agency reported.
According to a statement by the General
Secretariat of the Cabinet, the amended pro‑
visions now indicate "income" as a require‑
ment for sponsoring family members, as
opposed to the previously listed "profes‑
sions" which allowed workers to sponsor
their families.
The amendment was in line with interna‑
tional developments and accordance with
best practices, it said.
"The decision aims at enhancing family
DIASPORA April 13-19, 2019 9
Khaleej Times. Many Indians were caught in a
tight spot after their degree certificates were
rejected for equivalency, and they had
approached the embassy seeking help.
According to an embassy statement, Suri
called on the UAE Minister of Education,
Hussain Al Hammadi, to resolve the issue.
"I am happy that after substantive discus‑
sions with the ministry, the issue has been
resolved and equivalence will be provided to
all applicants who meet other re levant
requirements. I must thank the minister for
his support and understanding," said Suri.
"I am sure the decision by the ministry will
come as a huge relief to many Indians who
were struggling to get equivalence for their
degrees," the Ambassador added.
UAE equivalency on Indian degrees is
mandatory for Indians to work in the UAE.
stability of foreign workers and social cohe‑
sion, as well as attracting highly skilled
workers while maintaining a healthy bal‑
ance between professional and personal
life," the statement added.
The Cabinet decision, according to the
statement, called on relevant government
entities to conduct studies to assess and
enhance the services provided to residents,
including aspects of education and health,
and encourage the active participation of
their family member in the job market as an
alternative to recruiting new workers from
abroad, within the existing policies and reg‑
ulations.
Minister of Human Resources and
Emiratisation Nasir Bin Thani Al Hamli said
that the Cabinet amendments will undoubt‑
edly strengthen family ties of workers,
reflect positively on the labour market,
boost productivity and support the national
economy. (IANS)
 10 April 13-19, 2019 US AFFAIRS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Homeland Security chief ousted

amid immigration crisis
News Analysis about what Trump may do. down because of the economic impact on
by Arul Louis Democratic Party's Senate leader Chuck the US if the $616 billion annual trade
Schumer said: "When even the most radical with Mexico were stopped. He instead gave

K
irstjen Nielsen, the head of the US
Home land Security, has quit
President Trump's cabinet amid an
upheaval at the highest echelons of the
government and an immigration crisis at
the country's southern border.
Trump announced her resignation on
Sunday after several months of tense rela‑
tions over her handling of immigration.
Her departure had the hallmarks of a
forced resignation given its suddenness
and the simmering dif ferences between
the two.
Last year, media reports said that Trump
had yelled at her for about half‑an‑hour at
a cabinet meeting accusing her of failing to
stop the tide of illegal immigration.
Illegal immigration has risen to crisis lev‑
els with more than 100,000 people appre‑
hended while crossing the border illegally
in March ‑ five times the number stopped
in March 2017 ‑ after 75,000 were
stopped in February, according to the US
government. Some estimates say that if
that rate of illegal immigration continued it
Kirstjen Nielsen quit as Secretary
of Homeland Security
would reach 1 million this year. "We want
to go in a tougher direction", Trump said
on Friday indicating he wants a new level
of enforcement. That signal reinforced by
Nielsen's departure raised apprehensions
voices in the administration aren't radical
enough for President Trump, you know
he's complete ly lost touch w ith the
American people." Incidentally, the
Homeland Security deputy secretary's job
is also vacant and Trump had to appoint
Customs and Border Protect ion
Commissioner Kevin McAleenan to be the
acting secretary.
Despite criticism of Trump of being anti‑
immigrant and the US turning hostile to
immigrants, thousands of people from
Central America continue to come in ever
larger numbers in caravans and in smaller
groups to demand asylum or the right to
immigrate. Many of them are camped at
the border, while others have crossed the
border illegally. A significant number of
them are families with children.
Trump has not been able to come up with
a solution for the crisis. In the latest
attempt, he threatened to shut down the
southern border completely if Mexico did
not stop the flow of potential illegal immi‑
grants coming through. But he backed
Mexico a yearʼs deadline to deal with it or
face high tariffs on automobile and certain
other imports.
Nielsen was caught between Trump's
demand for stronger enforcement and
Democrats' harsh criticism of her efforts.
"I can say with confidence our homeland
is safer today than when I joined the
administration," Nielsen said in her resig‑
nation letter. "We have implemented his‑
toric efforts to defend our borders, combat
illegal immigration, obstruct the inflow of
drugs, and uphold our laws and values."
Nielson's policy last year to separate chil‑
dren from their families to work around a
court order against detaining children for
more than 20 days, backfired as pictures of
them taken from parents or guardians still
in detention flooded the media.
While other crucial immigration issues
like the wait of more than years that most
applicants for legal immigration from India
face, or the legalization of those who were
brought into the US as children await, the
border crisis has consumed all attention.

Obama warns Democrats Democrats will 'never' obtain

of a 'circular firing squad'
Washington: In the run up to his
party selecting its presidential
candidate for 2020, former
President Barack Obama warned
Democrats about the dangers of
rigid ideological dogmatism,
which can lead to a "circular fir‑
ing squad". Obama was dis‑
cussing the importance of com‑
promise in a functioning democ‑
racy at the town hall‑style forum
with "emerging European lead‑
ers" at an Obama Foundation
event in Berlin on Saturday.
"One of the things I do worry
about sometimes among pro‑
gressives in the United States is a
certain kind of rigidity where we
say, 'Ah, I'm sorry, this is how it's
gonna be.' And then we start
sometimes creating what's called
a circular firing squad where you
start shoot ing at your allies
because one of them is straying
from purity on the issues. And
when that happens, typically the
The former
President was
speaking at a
town‑hall
style event in
Berlin. (Photo
courtesy
Reuters)
overall ef fort and movement
weakens," Obama said.
Obamaʼs warning comes as his
party appears increasingly divid‑
ed between left‑wing politicians
such as New York Rep.
Alexandria Ocasio‑Cortez and
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders
who espouse democratic social‑
ism, and more mo derate
Demo crats advo cat ing more
incremental reforms.
That tension is also emerging
in the race for the 2020
Democratic presidential nomina‑
tion where voters will weigh
whether to support figures call‑
ing for sweeping progressive
policies such as Medicare for All
and the Green New Deal, or more
establishment Democratic fig‑
ures, such as Obama's former
running mate Joe Biden who, if
he decides to run, might have
more appeal in the general elec‑
tion.
Trump's tax returns: Mulvaney
Washington: Congressional
Democrats will "never" obtain US
President Donald Trump's tax
returns, acting White House chief
of staf f Mick Mulvaney said on
Sunday.
"Keep in mind, that's an issue that
was already litigated during the
election. Voters knew the President
could have given over his tax
returns, they knew that he didn't
and they e lected him anyway.
Which, of course, is what drives the
Democrats crazy," Mulvaney told
Fox News on Sunday after House
Ways and Means Committee
Chairman Richard Neal, a Democrat
from Massachusetts, formally
requested six years of Trump's per‑
Skyscrapers killing up to 1 bn birds a year in US
New York: At least 100
million and maybe as
many as a billion birds
die each year in the US
when they collide with
buildings, especially
glass‑covered or illumi‑
nated skyscrapers,
according to a new
study. Chicago, with its
many glass superstructures that
spike into what is the busiest US
avian airspace during migra‑
tion, is the most dangerous city
for those feathered travelers,
sonal tax returns from the IRS, CNN
reported. In a letter sent on
Wednesday to the IRS, Neal cites a
little known IRS code in his request
for six years of Trump's personal
tax returns from 2013 to 2018. He
also requested the tax returns of
eight of Trump's business entities, a
nod to escalating pressure from lib‑
erals in the caucus who have
argued that Trump's personal
returns wouldn't sufficiently paint a
picture of the President's financial
history.
"The Democrats are demanding
that the IRS turn over the docu‑
ments and that is not going to hap‑
pen and they know it," Mulvaney
said, adding that the request "is a
said the study published by the
Cornell Lab of Ornithology that
ranked cities based on the dan‑
ger they pose to mig rat ing
birds. According to the study,
more than 5 million birds from
political stunt." Trump's outside
counsel, William Consovoy of the
law firm Consovoy McCarthy Park
PLLC, argued in a statement Friday
that the requests for Trump's tax
information "are not consistent
with governing law, do not advance
any proper legislative purpose, and
threaten to interfere with the ordi‑
nary conduct of audits." House
Intelligence Committee Chairman
Adam Schiff cast doubt Sunday on
the ability of Trump's legal team to
withhold his taxes, saying, "there is
no legal ground for them here."
The President has said previously
that he would release his taxes but
for an audit he has claimed to be
under for years.
at least 250 dif ferent
species fly through the
Windy City's downtown
every fall and spring, the
Guardian reported.
They journey twice a
year, many thousands of
miles, going north in the
spring from Central and
South America, across the
Great Lakes to Canada, and
back south in the fall. T he
famous skyline of Manhattan is
another death trap for birds,
especially those migrating.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info INDIA NEWS April 13-19, 2019 11

MAHA KUMBH
OF DEMOCRACY
New Delhi: The BJP's election mani‑
festo released on Monday affirmed
the party's stand on national securi‑
ty, including the resolve to fight ter‑
rorism.
It also mentioned the core ideolog‑
ical issues, announced new pension
schemes to counter the Congress'
"Nyay" thrust, and spoke about
meeting the aspirations of the peo‑
ple in the next five years, reiterating
that the Narendra Modi‑led govern‑
ment had met the requirements in
the last five years.
The manifesto set short‑term tar‑
gets to be achieved by 2022, while
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also
talked about laying the foundation
for making India a developed coun‑
try by 2047 when the country will
ce lebrate the centenary of its
Independence.
The manifesto mentioned almost
all the issues associated with the
party, including the construction of
a grand Ram temple at Ayodhya,
abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu
and Kashmir and the Uniform Civil
Code.
With the tagline "Sankalpit Bharat,
Sashakt Bharat" (committed India,
BJP's election themes:
National security, development
strong India), farmers. After los‑
the BJP's
"Sankalp Patra"
ing power
Madhya Pradesh,
in
Black money, jobs missing
(manifesto)
sought to reach
Rajasthan and
Chhattisgarh last from BJP's 'jhansa patra'
out to all sec‑ year, the BJP has New Delhi: Tearing into the BJP's promises".
tions of people, been making extra election manifesto for the Lok "Today, 125 crore people of the
including the efforts to reach out Sabha polls, the Congress on country are demanding answers
farmers, small PM Narendra Modi addresses a to the farmers. Monday dubbed it a "jhansa patra" from Modiji on 125 promises made
s h o p k e e p e r s , public rally in Latur, Maharashtra T he manifesto (document of deceit) and said before coming to power. People
youth, women, on Tuesday. (Photo: IANS) said that when India important issues like jobs, GST, will not accept your 'jhansa patra'
the middle class will celebrate the black money and demonetization anymore. It is now time to pack
and the poor. 75th year of its Independence in are missing from the whole your bags and leave," he said at a
Reaching out to the poor, small 2022, the country would have ful‑ announcement exercise. press conference here.
farmers and small shopkeepers is filled 75 goals related to agriculture, Congress spokesperson Randeep "You promised two crore jobs
crucial for the BJP in view of the infrastructure, economy, governance Surjewala said the Bharatiya Janata every year, which translates to 10
Congress' promise of providing and education, among others. Party (BJP) leaders ‑‑ including crore jobs in five years. In reality,
annual minimum income support of The 75 goals include the creation Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during these five years, number of
Rs 72,000 to 20 per cent of the of 10,000 new farmer producer party President Amit Shah, and jobs have actually got reduced by
poorest families in the country if it organisations, pension for small and ministers Arun Jaitley and Sushma 4.7 crore. And it's not something
is voted to power. marginal farmers above 60 years, Swaraj ‑‑ did not speak even a sin‑ that I am saying, but what has been
The Congress on Sunday unveiled digitisation of land records, toilets in gle word on those issues.He said said by the government's own
its campaign slogan ‑‑ "Ab Hoga every household, access to safe and the BJP should start packing as NSSO (National Sample Survey
Nyay" (Now, there will be justice). potable drinking water, electrifica‑ people would reject its false prom‑ Organisation) data," he added.
"Nyay" is incidentally the acronym tion of all railway tracks, establish‑ ises and throw the party out of The Congress leader added that
of its minimum income guarantee ment of 1.5 lakh health centres and power, and that the party should while the BJP had promised to
scheme ‑‑ Nyuntam Aay Yojana. improving Gross Domestic Product have issued a "maafinama" (apolo‑ bring back Rs 80 lakh crore in
In its manifesto, the Bharatiya (GDP) share from the manufacturing gy letter) instead of a "jhansa black money and deposit Rs 15
Janata Party (BJP) said that it would sector. patra". lakh in each Indian's bank account,
seek to double farmers' income by The manifesto also talked about Questioning the BJP‑led govern‑ "in reality, Lalit Modi, Nirav Modi,
2022, invest Rs 1 lakh crore in high‑ the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, ment on its earlier promises made Mehul Choksi and Vijay Mallya
er education, ensure housing for all over which the party faces opposi‑ in the manifesto for the 2014 elec‑ looted Rs 1 lakh crore of the tax‑
and 100 per cent electrification in tion from almost all its allies in the tions, the Congress also released a payer's money and fled the country
the next three years. It also prom‑ Northeast. It said the BJP would list of 125 questions on "broken right under Modi's nose".
ised to set up a National Traders enact the bill if it returns to power
Commission. after the Lok Sabha elections. growth to build a "New India" and as examples of the government's
The party promised pension to the The party also reiterated its com‑ make it a $10 trillion economy by strong resolve against terrorism.
small farmers and small shopkeep‑ mitment to the Triple Talaq Bill. 2032. "Our new policy and new doctrine
ers and said that the PM‑KISAN Declaring its aim to make India The BJP leaders also highlighted of striking terror in its origin has
scheme, which provides Rs 6,000 the third largest economy in the the 2016 cross‑border surgical received g lobal recognition,"
annual assistance to the small world by 2030, the BJP said it strikes and the recent air strike in Finance Minister Arun Jailtey said at
famers, will be extended to all the would promote investment‑driven Balakot by the Indian Air Force (IAF) the manifesto release function.

FB police came at my door

with proper identity:
Delhi user
New Delhi: A Delhi‑based user, who got a
shock of his life when a Facebook representa‑
tive knocked at his door to verify if he is the
one who wrote a post with political content,
said on Tuesday that the man arrived with a
proper company identity.
"He came in civil clothes with a proper
Facebook identity. He asked for my Aadhaar
Card to verify my credentials for writing a
mere post on the social networking platform
with political content," the distressed person
told IANS.
Facebook has been denying any such meas‑
ure in place as India goes to polls on
Thursday. We do not yet know if there are
more such incidents as the country prepares
for an intense election battle.
The company said on Monday that it is
removing or blocking about one million abu‑
sive accounts a day with the use of Artificial
Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)
tools. This kind of behavior has not been seen
or reported earlier even at the global level as
several countries have gone through the elec‑
tions with Facebook trying its best to curb
misinformation.
Legal experts have called for a tougher
action against Facebook for physically verify‑
ing a user, which is unprecedented.
Physical verification of a user is gross viola‑
tion and unwarranted under the ambit of the
Information Technology Act, 2000.
Facebook can, at best, discontinue a Page,
Group or delete the post, or remove the user
from its platform in case of a violation of its
rules.
When it comes to those who wants to run
political ads on Facebook, the company veri‑
fies residency of advertisers either by physi‑
cal verification (by sending someone to the
address provided) or by sending a code in the
post. The same process can be applied for
writing a post with political content is
unheard of, even globally.
 12 April 13-19, 2019
MAHA KUMBH
OF DEMOCRACY
New Delhi: There are 167 marginal
seats that will decide the extent of
victory for the National Democratic
Alliance (NDA) and the Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) as deductions
from poll arithmetic show a distinct
head start to the ruling dispensa‑
tion, indicating a second‑term for
Prime Minister Narendra Modi,
according to the number analysis
on the basis of data mined by
CVOTER‑IANS.
But a three per cent sw ing
against the NDA will restrict its
tally to 210, marginally ahead of
Congress‑led United Progressive
Alliance's 182 with others getting
151.
Another conclusion that can be
drawn from the numbers is that a
repeat of 2004, when the NDA lost
the e lect ions despite being a
favourite, is remote as the Congress
is not as strong as it was 15 years
ago with its vote share coming
down from 28 per cent then to
19.5 per cent now when it goes
into the 2019 polls. The latest ver‑
sion of the CVoter‑IANS poll tracker
2019, released on Monday, has a
cumulative sample size of 1,05,000
since January 1 and a weekly addi‑
Will implement SC
order on VVPATs: EC
New Delhi: T he Election
Commission on Monday
said it would take all neces‑
sary steps to implement the
Supreme Court's order to
increase random matching
of voter‑verified paper audit
trail ( VVPAT ) slips with
EVM results in five polling
booths per assembly seg‑
ment, instead of one.
"The Election Commission
of India shall make all out
ef forts to operationalize
and implement the direc‑
tions of Hon'ble Supreme
Court with immediate ef fect," the
poll panel's of ficial spokesperson
said.
Earlier in the day, the Supreme
Court had directed the Election
Commission to increase random
matching of VVPAT slips with elec‑
tronic vot ing machine (EVM)
NDA‑BJP in lead, marginal seats
to decide victory margin
A three per cent swing against the NDA will restrict its tally to 210
seats, says the poll.
tion of 33,000 respondents. Out of
the 167 marginal seats, the NDA
was in the lead on 57 and the oppo‑
sition dominated the remaining
110. The opposition tend to lose
more because for every single NDA
seat in the red zone, the opposition
has two. The NDA stands to gain
results to ensure the g reatest
degree of accuracy and satisfaction
in the election process. The court's
direction came on a plea by leaders
of 21 opposition parties who want‑
ed it to be hiked to 50 per cent of
EVMs per assembly segment.
Presently, the Elect ion
Commission matches VVPAT slips
INDIA NEWS
from even a marginal swing which
can result in a disproportionate
increase in the number of seats.
T he reverse holds true for the
opposition as even a marginal
swing in its favour might not lead
to substantial increase in their seat
tally. If Prime Minister Narendra
of 4,125 EVMs under the
"one EVM per assembly
segment" guideline. Now
it would have to count
the VVPAT slips of
20,625 EVMs. T he
Election Commission had
earlier asked the Indian
Stat ist ical Inst itute
regarding a reasonable
sample size for matching
VVPAT slips to verify the
EVM results. The insti‑
tute had responded that
a sample of 479 EVMs
would generate 99.99
per cent accuracy in results.
T he opposit ion part ies had
demanded raising the number of
EVM machines to 5.17 lakh.
With the first phase of voting
starting on April 11, the court
hoped this would satisfy both the
political parties and the voters.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Most voters satisfied with
performance of Modi
New Delhi: Around half of the voters surveyed by CVOTER‑IANS
continue to be very satisfied with the performance of Prime
Minister Narendra Modi. The poll tracker interviewed 12,050 vot‑
ers on April 4 and found that 50.95 per cent of them said they
were very satisfied with the performance of the Prime Minister
while another 22.49 per cent said they were satisfied to some
extent. There were 25.29 per cent voters who said they were not
happy with him at all. The satisfaction level with the Prime
Minister remained high mostly after the air strikes on the terror
camp in Pakistan's Balakot whose momentum on the voters has
sustained despite a slight dip. The latest findings of the tracker
poll has come just three days ahead of the first phase of polling on
April 11. The Prime Minister had the best approval rating of over
55 per cent on March 6, 7 and 8. But the sample size on those
days was half of what it was on April 4. There has also been a mar‑
ginal rise in those who are not at all satisfied with the Prime
Minister from around 20 per cent in the first week to March to
around 25 per cent in the first week of April.
Modi is able to generate a swing in away from the BJP will mean loss
the last days of the campaign like of 57 seats but +3 (plus 3) per cent
seen in the various elections lead‑ swing will mean gain of 102. Going
ing up to 2019, it may prove cata‑ by the last e lect ions, Prime
strophic for the opposition as the Minister Modi's aggressive cam‑
NDA can reclaim at least 102 seats paigning in the last few days can
where it was runner‑up last time. impact the BJP vote share by two to
The marginal seat dynamics will be five per cent.
at play in Uttar Pradesh where 30 Even a one per cent sw ing
seats are in this zone making it towards the NDA will take its tally
tough to predict if it will be advan‑ beyond 300 and three per cent
tage Mahagathbandhan. But it can swing away from it will lead to its
work in favour of either of the com‑ tally coming down to 210. If there
binations, leaving the field vast is no swing, the NDA will end up
open. In the final six weeks of cam‑ with 267 with the UPA getting 142
paign, a ‑3 (minus 3) per cent swing and others 134.
Ahead of elections, huge unaccounted
cash racket unearthed
New Delhi: On the second day of its
continued searches across Madhya
Pradesh, the Central Board of Direct
puter files and excel sheets seized
corroborate the findings, the
spokesperson added.
Taxes (CBDT) on Monday detected a Acting on a tip‑off of large‑scale
widespread and well‑organized collection, possession and move‑
racket of collection of unaccounted ment of unaccounted assets, the
cash, to the tune of Rs 281 crore, Delhi Directorate of Income Tax
involving persons from dif ferent (Investigation) initiated search and
walks of life including business, pol‑ seizure actions on a group active in
itics and public service. NCR, Bhopal, Indore and Goa. More
Apart from cash, the Income Tax than 300 IT officials participated in
of ficials have also recovered 252 the operation taking place at about
bottles of liquor, some arms and 52 locations in four states.
tiger hides. "A part of cash ‑‑ Rs 20 T he searches in De lhi on the
crore ‑‑ was also transferred recent‑ group of a close relative of the sen‑
ly to the headquarters of a major ior party functionary have further
political party in Delhi through led to seizure of incriminating evi‑
hawala channel from the residence dence including cash book record‑
of a senior functionary at Tughlak ing unaccounted transactions of Rs
Road, New De lhi," a CBDT 230 crore, siphoning of f money
spokesperson said in a statement. through bogus billing of more than
The statement, however, did not Rs 242 crore and evidence of pres‑
identify the political party or its ence of more than 80 companies in
"senior functionary". tax havens, the CBDT said.
Meticulous records of collection It is suspected that the seized
and disbursement of cash in the cash was meant to be used during
form of hand‑written diaries, com‑ the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Maoists kill BJP MLA,
4 more in Chhattisgarh
Raipur: Maoists explo ded an
improvised explosive device (IED)
in Chhatt isg arh on Tuesday
evening, killing BJP MLA Bhima
Mandavi, his driver and three per‑
sonal security officers in a forest‑
ed part of Dantewada district, offi‑
cials said.
The Maoists carried out "the
meticulously planned attack"
when Mandavi was hurrying to an
election meeting just before the
close of election campaign at 5
p.m. for the first phase of Lok
Sabha battle starting on Thursday.
Director General of Police
Giridhar Naik said five people had
been killed and that only Baghel's
vehicle was targeted in the convoy
of vehicles in Kuakonda area.
Initially, another of ficer had
said that all the killed were securi‑
ty personnel and were from the
District Reserve Group, a locally
raised force vested with battling
Charge sheet filed
against Bishop Franco
Bishop Franco Mulakkal.
Kottayam ( Kerala): Kerala
Police on Tuesday submitted a
1,400‑page charge sheet
ag ainst Bishop Franco
Mulakkal. T he Bishop was
arrested for alleged sexually
abusing a nun between 2014
and 2016. The charge sheet
was filed before the Magistrate
Court in Pala, near here, where
the trial will take place. The
charges include rape, unnatural
sex and keeping in forced cus‑
tody.
Mulakkal was arrested on
September 21, 2018, on rape
charges after four nuns joined a
public protest in Kochi forcing
the police to take action against
the bishop.
Mulakkal secured bail on
October 16, 2018, but is no
longer head of the diocese.
The charge sheet names 83
The site where Maoists exploded an improvised explosive device
(IED) killing BJP MLA Bhima Mandavi and 4 policemen, in
Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district.
Maoists. Mandavi was the lone
Bharatiya Janata Party MLA from
Bastar region which accounts for
12 Assembly seats.
This was the first Maoist attack
in Chhattisgarh after the Congress
took power in December, ending
witnesses, which include the
Cardinal of the Syro‑Malabar
Catholic Church, Mar George
Alencherry, three bishops, 11
priests and several nuns.
The probe picked pace only
after Sister Anupama, along
with three other nuns, staged a
public protest, which received
huge public support. Last
month, the nuns threatened to
launch another protest if the
charge sheet was delayed.
Hearing the news of the sub‑
mission of the charge sheet,
Anupama said they were happy
with the development. "We feel
we have got 50 per cent justice
and wish to thank the police
team, which we all know was
under tremendous pressure."
"We know only half of the job
is done, and hope the trial will
start soon," she said.
INDIA NEWS
15 years of BJP rule.
Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel
canceled his election meetings
and rushed to his of fice for a
meeting with senior police and
intelligence of ficers after the
attack.
EDELWEISS DOWNGRADES JET
AIRWAYS ON 'MOUNTING RISK'
Mumbai: Brokerage firm
Edelweiss on Tuesday downgrad‑
ed the Jet Airways stock from
from 'hold' to 'reduce' owing to
the mounting risk on the finan‑
cially troubled airline.
The report said that Jet may
eventually lose 50 planes to
lessors which would cut its fleet
size down to 73 in the financial
year 2020‑2021.
The brokerage firm also cut
Jet's target price(TP) by 22 per
cent to Rs 177 and also the full
service carrier's earnings before
AgustaWestland case: ED
opposes Sushen Gupta's bail
New Delhi: The Enforcement
D i r ec t o r a t e ( E D ) , h e r e o n
Tuesday, opposed the bail plea
of Sushen Mohan Gupta, an
alleged middleman in the Rs
3,600‑crore AgustaWestland
VVIP chopper deal case.
Special Judge Arvind Kumar
said he would hear further
arguments on the bail plea on
April 11.
G u p t a w a s a r r e s t ed o n
M a r ch 2 6 , a d a y a f t e r t h e
court allowed Rajiv Saxena, a
Dubai‑based businessman and
alleged middleman in the deal,
to turn approver.
April 13-19, 2019
IMF cuts India GDP
growth forecast to 7.3%
New Delhi: The International
Monetary Fund (IMF) on
Tuesday pared Indiaʼs growth
forecast for 2019‑20 by 20
basis points to 7.3% citing loss
of momentum, following simi‑
lar action by the Asian
D e ve l o p m e n t B a n k ( A D B )
and the Reserve Bank of India
(RBI).
“In India, growth is projected
to pick up to 7.3% in 2019 and
7.5% in 2020, supported by the
continued recovery of invest‑
ment and robust consumption
amid a more expansionary
stance of monetary policy and
some expected impetus from
fiscal policy.
Nevertheless, reflecting the
recent revision to the national
account statistics that indicated
somewhat softer underlying
momentum, growth forecasts
have been revised downward
compared with the October
interest, taxes, depreciation,
amortization, and restructuring
or rent costs (EBITDAR) forecast
by 35 per cent for the current
fiscal, and by 49 per cent for the
financial year 2020‑2021.
"We cont inue to assume a
swerve back to profit during
FY21E and a fair EV/EBITDAR of
7x. But given mounting risk, we
are cutting the TP by 22 per cent
to Rs 177 and downgrading the
stock from 'HOLD' to 'REDUCE',"
Edelweiss said.
"We believe JAL's (Jet Airways)
Saxena, in his disclosure
statement submitted to the ED,
r e ve a l ed t h a t I n t e r s t e l l a r
Technologies, a company that
received AgustaWestland kick‑
b a c k s , w a s c o n t r o l l ed b y
Khaitan and Gupta.
According to the statement,
Saxena also presented two
diaries, some loose sheets,
documents and a pen drive, all
related to Gupta.
T he United Arab Emirates
(UAE) security agencies had
picked up Saxena from his
Dubai residence on January
30 and extradited him to India.
13
2018 WEO by 0.1 percentage
point for 2019 and 0.2 per‑
centage point for 2020, respec‑
tively," IMF said in its latest
World Economic Outlook.
When compared to its more
recent update of the World
Economic Outlook released in
January, the downward revi‑
sion in Indiaʼs growth forecasts
is 20 basis point each in 2019‑
20 and 2020‑21.
Both the ADB and the RBI last
week cut their 2019‑20 growth
projection for India to 7.2%
from the earlier 7.4%, blaming
rising risks to global economic
activity as well as weakening
domestic investment activity.
The Indian economy deceler‑
ated to a five‑quarter low of
6.6% in the December quarter,
w h i ch l ed t o t h e C e n t r a l
Statistics Of fice trimming its
2018‑19 forecast to 7% from
7.2% estimated earlier.
EBITDAR shall witness a sharper
contraction due to operating
leverage; it would, therefore,
record another quarter of losses
exceeding Rs 10 billion."
The downgrade comes at the
time when three‑fourth of Jet's
original fleet has been grounded
with consequent flight cancella‑
tions.
T he brokerage said: "While
varying possibilities are emerg‑
ing, including the hunt for a new
buyer and a debt write‑off, Jet's
viability has taken a hit."
He was granted bail on med‑
ical grounds last week. The ED
did not oppose his bail appli‑
cation.
According to the ED, Saxena,
in connivance with Khaitan,
developed the global corpo‑
rate structure that laundered
money for payment to politi‑
cians, bureaucrats and Indian
Air Force (IAF) of ficials to
influence the contract for sup‑
plying 12 VVIP choppers in
f a vo r of A gu s t a We s t l a n d ,
the Rome‑based he licopter
d e s i g n a n d m a n uf a c t u r i n g
company.
 14 April 13-19, 2019
Will BJP listen to Advani's advice?
By Amulya Ganguli
I
t would have been better if L.K.
Advani had given his excellent
advice to his party men about
their attitude towards other par‑
ties before being denied a Lok
Sabha ticket.
Now, it would appear that the
nonagenarian former Deputy
Prime Minister was expressing his
resentment by criticizing the party
for not choosing him as a candi‑
date for yet another term in the
Lok Sabha.
Even then, the validity of his
advice remains unimpaired. But
will his party listen? Going by ini‑
tial reactions, there is no sign that
the BJP has accepted the central
point of his charge that political
opponents are not anti‑nationals.
Instead, at least one spokesper‑
son argued on TV that if the
Congress sided with the "tukde‑
tukde gang" or those who want to
break up the country, then it can
be called anti‑national.
Ever since the BJP's victory in
Congress manifesto a mirage not reality
By Jayanta Ghosal
W
ith elections, comes the
t ime of compet it ive
populism and the latest
Congress manifesto is no dif fer‑
ent, crossing all previous bound‑
aries. Rahul Gandhi wants to proj‑
ect himself as Santa Claus for the
upcoming e lect ions, w ith an
assortment of promises for just
about everyone. The larger aim:
Rahul Gandhi wants to construct a
counter narrative of social justice
to the Indian poor and the com‑
mon people of India, in contrast to
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's
narrat ive of a strong Hindu
nation.
The Congress manifesto says
there should be a separate budget
formers. Rahul Gandhi says that
the NYAY scheme will be his pri‑
ority and that it will file 22 lakh
vacancies by March 2020. In
doing so, he is also selling dreams
without any practical way out.
The signs of populism become
abundantly clear when one looks
at the Congress manifesto that
promises 150 days of guaranteed
work under the Mahatma Gandhi
National Rural Guarantee Act, as
opposed to the previous 100. It
adds that it will eliminate poverty
by 2030 through NYAY.
The head of the manifesto com‑
mittee, P. Chidambaram
announced that the manifesto will
Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacts with BJP senior party leader
LK Advani. (File Photo: IANS)
2014, it has apparently interpret‑
ed its majority in the Lok Sabha
and also that of the group by it, the
National Democratic Alliance, as a
stamp of approval by the voters of
the party's nationalist credentials,
a claim which automatically places
the losers in a less exalted catego‑
ry. The BJP's nationalist assertions
The Congress's major problem is that there is no mahagathbandhan ‑
no common minimum program, no joint action plan.
set the narrative for the upcoming
polls. But is that really the case?
My personal opinion is that even
now, Rahul Gandhi and his assur‑
ances still don't have the same
kind of mass acceptance.
The Congress held press confer‑
ences in 22 different places of the
country at the same time. But
what is the impact and influence
of that? Things have changed for
Narendra Modi. It is a law of
nature that discontent of the peo‑
ple will grow with time. No one
has clear political skies forever.
Nehru, as the Prime Minister, used
to write letters to all the chief
The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
OP-ED
have also gone hand‑in‑hand with
the contention that its 2014 victo‑
ry marked the end of 1,200 years
of the nation's subjugation by the
Muslims and the British.
The BJP has also been insisting
that "nothing" had been achieved
by its predecessors since 1947.
It is obvious that such grandilo‑
ministers and argue that the main
problem of our country is price
rise, inflation and corruption. In
2019, we are still combating the
same problems and raising the
same issues during elections.
Rahul Gandhi has a major prob‑
lem, that of the huge baggage that
he comes with that is a product of
history and not his doing in any
way. The Gandhi family has ruled
this country for several decades.
In the last five years, and even
before that, the BJP has estab‑
lished a political narrative that
Nehru and Congress family's lega‑
cy is responsible for a weak poor
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
quence is behind the categoriza‑
tion of the BJP's critics as "anti‑
nationals".
The label fits in with the party's
own macho nationalism whose pri‑
mary target at the moment is
Pakistan. Hence, the occasional
advice given to the "anti‑nationals"
to go to Pakistan.
Given the focus and the intensity
of the BJP's present world‑view, it
is doubtful if Advani's counsel for
toning down the party's rhetoric
will be heeded.
Ironically, Advani himself was
once a hardliner, having charioted
a rath in order to mobilize the
opinion of Hindus for demolishing
what he called the "ocular provo‑
cation" of the Babri masjid. It was
in his presence in Ayodhya that
the ancient mosque was brought
down by the kar sevaks on
December 6, 1992.
That may have been a cathartic
experience for him, for he gradual‑
ly turned into a moderate a la Atal
Bihari Vajpayee and began to show
his appreciation of India's diversi‑
nation. Instead, Modi has put for‑
ward the narrative of a 'strong
nation with a strong leader', with
himself at its helm.
During these e lect ions, the
Congress and several regional
parties have to come to an under‑
standing, a pre‑poll understanding
and if that isn't the case, then
there can't be a post poll coalition.
Rahul is also more active today
than he was earlier. In 2014, the
general media perception was
that Rahul Gandhi was a 'pappu'.
This, he has largely been able to
change and now comes across a
more mature and active person.
ty. It is this aspect of India's per‑
sona which Advani has stressed in
his latest blog where he has
emphasized that a political battle‑
field does not envisage the annihi‑
lation of the enemy. Instead, it is
more like the jousting on a field of
sports where today's victors can be
tomorrow's vanquished and vice
versa.
If the BJP's first stint in power at
the centre did not see the party
engage in the kind of virulent con‑
frontation with the opposition as
at present, the reason was the
presence of the amiable Vajpayee
at the helm.
What has changed since then is,
first, the assumption of power by a
new set of saffron politicians who
are apparently less tolerant of dis‑
sent than their predecessors.
But, irrespective of whether it
can repeat its 2014 performance,
as an analyst has said, or fail to get
a majority of its own, as some
opinion polls have predicted, the
BJP should pay heed to the advice
of an elder statesman.
But the Pulwama attack and the
Balakot strike have changed the
entire milieu, the whole nation
was captured by the national sen‑
timents and the BJP has success‑
fully used that nationalist senti‑
ment. Rahul Gandhi thought elec‑
tion agenda will be poverty, job‑
lessness and the problem of farm‑
ers and Dalits. Instead 'ant i‑
Pakistan' sentiment is a major
issue now. Especially in the Hindi‑
heartland.
With the manifesto, Rahul
Gandhi is attempting to revive his
old issue, an anti‑Modi campaign
based on social justice and socio‑
economic issues of Indian voters.
Basically the battle is now
between the nationalist rhetoric
of strong Hindutva and a stable
state under the leadership of
Narendra Modi versus justice for
the poor, the farmers and the
stressed middle classes. Why are
they all against immigration of
foreigners? W hy are they no
longer liberal about the H‑1 visa?
W hy are they not we lcoming
international students like in the
past? The pressure on the conomy
is a global phenomenon and the
Indian economy can't be isolated.
The Congress's major problem
is that there is no mahagathband‑
han ‑ no common minimum pro‑
gram, no joint action plan. At this
critical juncture of Indian politics,
you need strong direction.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info LENS EYE April 13-19, 2019 15

Political leaders
are crisscrossing
the nation to
canvas for votes
Prime Minister
Narendra Modi
for the 2019 Lok
remains the
most popular
leader in India
Sabha election.
today. In many
BJP election Supporters of
rallies you can
find some
people wearing
the main parties
Modi face‑
masks. This
one has a few
in America are
men in the
front row even
adding their
wearing his
trademark
dresses.
mite too.

Congress' Lok
Sabha candidate
from Mumbai
North, actress
Urmila
Matondkar
accompanied by
her husband
Mohsin Akhtar
Mir, arrives to file
her nomination
papers for Lok
Sabha election
w ahead in Mumbai on
Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi during a roadsho April 8.
of 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Wayanad, Kerala on April 4

BJP chief Amit

Shah during
electioneering
for the Lok Sabha
elections in Puri,
Odisha on April
9. Also seen BJP
leaders
Dharmendra
Pradhan and
Sambit Patra.

to reach remote
Election officials carry Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) on a boat
stations from Majuli ‑ the world's largest river island, ahead of 2019 Lok
polling
Sabha elections, in Assam's Majuli district on April 9. (Photos : IANS)

A section of the
participants in the
Shiv Shakti Maha Puja
and Yagna held at the
Shri Sanatan Mandir
in Parsippany, N.J.,
April 7, to pray for the
re‑election victory of
Indiaʼs Prime Minister
a Kumar taken
CPI's Lok Sabha candidate from Begusarai, student leader Kanhaiy Narendra Modi
tion for the Lok Sabha elections in
in a procession ahead of filing his nomina (Photo : Raja Bhatty)
Bihar's Begusarai on April 9.
 16 April 13-19, 2019 BOLLYWOOD TheSouthAsianTimes.info

We see compelling stories in India: 'Padosan' in IMDb's

'Avengers: Endgame' director
A
part from creating the
gigantic world of
top 100 Indian films,
Saira Banu happy
in late 1990s to helming a
film "Avengers: Endgame"

T
superheroes, Joe which is breaking ticket pre‑
he 1968 film
Russo is also working on sales records, the brothers
"Padosan" has
bringing alive India‑set sto‑ have come a long way. Joe
entered the top 100
ries for Amazon Studios as describes themselves as
Indian Movie List of IMDb.
well as Netflix. The filmmaker "disruptors".
Veteran actress Saira Banu
says there are still many "We like to deconstruct
says the movie was offered
"compelling stories" rooted things... That's our general
to her early in her career
deep in the country's "amaz‑ disposition and it was inter‑
and she is glad that she
ing" culture waiting to be esting (to join the Marvel
could stand up to the "for‑
told. Cinematic Universe) because
midable" talent of her co‑
Telling stories has always we came in at a point where
stars.
been an integral part of we could start deconstruct‑
"I'm truly happy to learn
Indian culture, and Joe, one ing the Marvel universe.
that 'Padosan' figures in the
half of the Russo Brothers, "We deconstructed the
count of top 100 films of
feels the tradition has played 'Captain America' movie. We
India on IMDb," Saira said
an important role in cement‑ went a complete different
Director Joe Russo at the launch of in a statement.
ing the position of Indian film direction from the first film
Indian anthem of Directed by Jyoti
industry around the globe. with 'Captain America: The
ʻAvengers: Endgameʼ in Mumbai. Swaroop, the comedy film
"I think the Indian film Winter Soldier'. Then we
in the group interview. is about a simple man from
industry, outside of Hollywood, is deconstructed 'Captain America:
For Netflix, Russo Brothers a village who falls in love
the most vibrant filmmaking Civil War' by tearing them apart
have backed India‑set kidnap with his fashionable and
market in the world, and a cul‑ and then we deconstructed the
drama "Dhaka", which will mark very urban neighbor.
ture which values storytelling," whole universe by killing half of Actress Saira Banu was offered the
the directorial debut of Sam "'Padosan' came to me in
Joe told IANS. the superheroes in 'Avengers: movie early in her career.
Hargrave. the early stages of my
"We see an amazing culture Infinity War'.”
Based on a script by Joe, career when I was myself a character of Bindu is a reflection
with rich tradition, storytelling "Avengers: Endgame" is culmi‑
"Dhaka" is an action film in carefree, extremely happy and of my real personality at that
and compelling stories to tell nation of over 20 Marvel movies,
which Chris Hemsworth has to lively young woman full of the time.
here... Especially because the and wraps up 10 years of story‑
save a kidnapped Indian boy. joie de vivre that comes when "Needless to say I thoroughly
audience is very savvy. They telling. It is slated to release in
From facing financial struggle one's dreams come true. Much of enjoyed my work," the actress
understand stories on a very pro‑ India on April 26 in English,
to make their first film "Pieces" the vibrancy you can see in the said.
found level," the filmmaker said Hindi, Tamil and Telugu.

Modi biopic expected to 'Romeo Akbar Walter': A

release in 38 countries contrived espionage drama
By Troy Ribeiro REVIEW
D
irector Robbie Grewal
seems to have taken
William Shakespeare's
quote, "What's in a name?" literally.
This film, "Romeo Akbar Walter" is
the story of an Indian spy with
many names and identities.
Set in 1971 during the India‑
Pakistan war, the tale brings to the
fore how Romeo (John Abraham),
the son of a former agent, was
picked up, groomed and deputed to
work for the Indian intelligence
agency RAW.
John Abraham plays an Indian spy in
So, after his training, on his first
ʻRomeo Akbar Walterʼ.
outing to Kashmir as Akbar Malik,
he is asked to trail Isaq Afridi (Anil They are both striking in their respective
George), a powerful Pakistani arms dealer. performances. The premise of the film is
From thence how he penetrates into certainly loaded, but as tactful as the
Actor Vivek Oberoi dressed as PM Narendra Modi at the trailer launch of the biopic. Pakistan, forms the crux of the tale. story can sometimes be with the narrative
With a naturally stoic ease, John

P
roducer Anand Pandit says the
team of "PM Narendra Modi" is
planning to release the film in 38
countries, including the US, UK, Canada,
Australia and the UAE. Directed by
Omung Kumar, the film narrates the
story of Modi from his humble begin‑
nings to becoming the Prime Minister of
India.
"PM Narendra Modi's life has great
interest not just among Indian audiences
but also cinema‑goers across the world.
We plan to release the film not just in the
country but in at least 38 countries,"
Pandit, one of the producers and distribu‑
tors of the biopic on Prime Minister
Narendra Modi, said in a statement.
"The film will release in 1700 screens
in India and we plan to release it in about
600 screens overseas," he added.
The release date of "PM Narendra
Modi" has been set for April 11, when the
Lok Sabha elections begin, the makers
announced.
Abraham effectively portrays the forgot‑
ten veteran, as an ultimate real‑life action
hero, who lives with humble values, loves
his mother and whose only purpose in life
is to serve his country.
In a slightly underwritten role, Mouni
Roy plays John's love interest and she
makes her presence felt despite being cast sensitive areas so easily?
in a badly etched character.
Sikander Kher as the Pakistani Colonel
Khan and Jackie Shroff as Shrikant, the
head of RAW, do not overplay their part.
and espionage knowledge, it never feels
that original.
Also, with cinematic liberties taken and
the nitty‑gritties missing, the film appears
contrived. There seem to be gaping plot
holes when Akbar transforms into Walter
and penetrates into the Pakistani armed
forces. How does he manage to get into
The story always feels to be in motion,
but the stakes appear low or missing and
that's what makes the viewing tedious.
The patriotic element is definitely forced.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Irrfan is back; starts shooting
for 'Angrezi Medium'
A
s Irrfan Khan, who
was away from the
arclights following
his neuroendocrine tumor
diagnosis last year, is back
on the sets to shoot
"Angrezi Medium". His wife
Sutapa Sikdar penned a
message thanking everyone
for the wishes and prayers
for the acclaimed actor's
speedy recovery.
Sutapa took to Facebook
and wrote: "Longest year of
our life ‑ Time was never
measured with pain and
hope at the same time ever.
While we take our baby
steps back to work, to life, I
am submerged in prayers,
wishes and faith from
friends, relatives, strangers
and a connection with uni‑
verse which gives us a small
chance for the new start.
"It seems unbelievable...
Never ever did I realize the
meaning of the word unpre‑
dictable so well. Never ever I
could feel people's wishes on my
bones, breath, heartbeat which
helped me to stay focused and
kicking."
Sutapa, who is also a film pro‑
ducer, added: "For today, we go
back to work and the dance and
song of life continues. Thank you
Will Smith grooves
to 'Radha' on
'SOTY2' sets
W
ill Smith has ticked
off Bollywood from
his bucket list. In a
clip of his Facebook show
"Bucket List", the 50‑year‑old
star met with several famous
Bollywood actors like Tiger
Shroff, Ananya Pandey and
Tara Sutaria as he prepared to
film one of the industry's
famous dance sequences for a
film here. He danced to "Radha
teri chunari".
"In my spiritual practice I'm
trying to be comfortable being
embarrassed, but I do not like
being embarrassed," Smith said
in the video.
As he greeted the actors on
the set of the Karan Johar pro‑
duction "Student Of The Year
2", Smith said that while he felt
nervous he managed to get "a
The latest episode of ʻBucket Listʼ
really good sense of what
makes Bollywood tick because
it's what makes me tick".
"People go to the movies
because they want to have fun,
they want to feel good. But
then by opening themselves to
this collective emotional expe‑
Actor Irrfan Khan was lying
low for months following
neuroendocrine tumor
diagnosis.
for believing in your prayers."
Celebrities like Swara Bhasker,
Hansal Mehta, Guneet Monga
and Randeep Hooda among
many others welcomed Irrfan.
In an emotional note posted on
his social media account, Irrfan
shared his thoughts on the
prayers, blessings and love he
received while he was fighting
the ailment in London.
will showcase actor Will Smithʼs
experience in Bollywood.
rience, an opportunity is pre‑
sented where we can actually
learn something about life,"
said the "Independence Day"
star.
BOLLYWOOD April 13-19, 2019 17
Ranveer Singh preps with
Kapil Dev for '83'
A
ctor Ranveer Singh is in
the process of "becoming
the hurricane" under the
training of iconic cricketer Kapil
Dev for the upcoming film "'83",
a Bollywood entertainer on
India's historical 1983 Cricket
World Cup win. Ranveer had
tweeted a photograph of himself
along with Kapil in Dharamsala.
Sporting the Indian cricket
team's blue jersey, the two can
be seen talking to each other in
the image. The cricketer seems
to be giving some tips to the
"Gully Boy" actor.
Actor Ranveer Singh during shooting of upcoming film ʻ83ʼ.
Ranveer captioned the image:
"Becoming the Hurricane. Kapil directed by Kabir Khan, and will final of the World Cup in 1983. It
Dev. Legend. Journey begins... see Ranveer playing Kapil. tracks the coming‑of‑age of not
'83'." "'83" follows how, under cap‑ just a cricketing team but of a
Presented by Reliance tain Kapil Dev, the Indian cricket young nation in the eyes of the
Entertainment, "'83" is being team defeated West Indies in the world.
Director's job not Excited that
an extracurricular Sara is working
activity: Shefali with Imtiaz: Saif
N A
ational Award‑winning actress Shefali Shah ctor Saif Ali Khan says he is very excited
had written a love story a few years ago that his daughter and actress Sara Ali Khan
and also wanted to don the director's hat is working with filmmaker Imtiaz Ali for the
for it. But she upcoming film "Love Aaj Kal 2". "It's a lovely movie
feels that a direc‑ and I'm very excited in particular that Sara is work‑
tor's job means a ing with Imtiaz Ali. I wish both the young stars ‑‑
lot of responsibili‑
ties and that it
Sara and Kartik Aaryan the best," Saif said in a
statement.
can't be done just There were reports that Saif, who was in the first
to "suffice your
need for an
instalment of "Love Aaj Kal", will be seen playing
the role of Kartik's father in the sequel.
extracurricular Saif said: "I'd honestly want to play every role
activity". provided it's interesting enough and if the time
Television shows, permitted it. Though Imtiaz was very kind to offer
short films, fea‑ me a part in the sequel of 'Love Aaj Kal', I haven't
ture films, theater signed the film contrary to the rumors."
and web series ‑
the 'Satya' actress
has dabbled in dif‑
ferent mediums.
What about
Award‑winning actress Shefali
going behind the
Shah was last seen in web
camera? series 'Delhi Crime'.
"Yes, I do want
to. It would be for a film and I think I know what it
is. But being a director is a lot of responsibility. I
can't just take off and say 'Oh! I feel like directing
today'. It is so many people's hard work on your
shoulders. So you have to be sure of what you are
doing out there. It can't be done just to suffice
your need for an extra‑curricular activity," Shefali
told IANS.
"Maybe the other way to look at it is that you
have to take the plunge. If you don't, you might
never be able to do it," she added.
Asked about the story, she shared: "There is a
script. It's a love story."
While she is yet to get on with the film, she is
currently enjoying the success of her web series
'Delhi Crime', helmed by Indo‑Canadian filmmaker
Richie Mehta.
Shefali donned the uniform to play Vartika
Chaturvedi, based on Chhaya Sharma, former
Deputy Commissioner of Police (South Delhi) who Actress Sara Ali Khan is working
led a team to solve the Nirbhaya rape case. on ʻLove Aaj Kal 2ʼ.
 18 April 13-19, 2019 TRAVEL TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Summer Is Here,
Where Will You Be
The 5 best places in India to
take your kids to this summer
By Precious Kamei those who know what to look for.
Weather‑wise it is perfect for a summer

W
ith schools closed for the sum‑
mer, it's time to take the kids
out for some fun. And when we
say out, we mean somewhere far and fun.
Here are five Indian destinations perfect
weather‑wise and are a great source of
edu‑tainment. Who says you can't learn
whilst having fun?
Gangtok, Sikkim
The tiny state of Sikkim is a treasure, for
break and kids will definitely love a
refreshing view of the mighty
Kanchenjunga. Sikkim state is hundred
percent organic.
Sounds healthy already, right? Add to
that clean mountain air, panoramic view
of Kanchenjunga from Tashi Viewpoint
and Ganesh Tok, a visit to Nathu La, A cable car in Gangtok
Botanical Garden, Tsomgo Lake, Rumtek antiques). From Gangtok, it's easy to trav‑ neat and tiny state, traffic is not a hassle,
Monastery, Enchey and Pemayangtse el to the rest of the state. A visit to in short, a safe and perfect place to take
monasteries (have a look at their priceless Ravangla is a must. Sikkim is also a very little children around.

Shillong, Meghalaya Bhimtal, Uttarakhand

S L
hillong is a destination you should have in your travel bucket list as a family. et them start young, this is true for every good thing a young one should come in
Perfect and kid‑friendly, this small city is full of life. While it can get a bit contact with. And with Bhimtal, it's all about natural beauty and butterflies, a lot
monotonous after you of them. A little bit of
are done with the usual hiking to calm the summer
around Shillong such as a madness down and then a
visit to the Golf Link (a natu‑ grand introduction to the
ral golf course), Shillong world of butterflies. Not too
Peak and Elephant Falls, one far away from the Bhimtal
always have the option to Lake is the Butterfly
visit the Mawlynnong Research Centre, home to
Village for the root bridges, the fourth largest butterfly
Cherrapunjee for its natural and moth reference collec‑
beauty and some cave tion in India. Bhimtal is
adventure or do the lesser‑ blessed with around 240
known‑‑drive up to Jowai species of butterfly. The
and back and have a picnic research center is originally
outdoors. The undisturbed a 150‑year‑old colonial bun‑
green rolling hillocks with a Living Root Bridge in Mawlynnong galow. You can stay at the The rare owl butterfly in Bhimtal
smattering of pine trees here bungalow if heritage and
and there are often ignored by tourists who visits Shillong just for the usual and the nature are what you are looking for; the tariff is ₹2500 per person with additional
most popular, not knowing the fact that these locations are perfect for a memorable ₹1000/person/day for Indian veg/non veg meals and ₹1500/person/day for European
picnic. Keeping Shillong as your base, you can even explore Barapani Lake. That's a meal. While you are here, you can have a look at local species like oak butterflies or the
beauty right there. rare ones like owl butterfly, peacock butterfly and snake butterfly. Better still, take the
children out to look for some butterflies and let them identify.
Goa
Ooty, Tamil Nadu

F
or young
ones, Ooty
can be all
about chocolates
and toy train rides.
Both are a big hit
with tourists of all
ages. During the
summer break no
one will want to
stay indoors in a
cool location, a hike
up the Doddabetta
Peak sounds just
Parasailing in Candolim, Goa the right thing to

I
do. The view of the
f cool climes aren't what you are looking for, then maybe some fun with sea, sand green valley below
and sun? Goa is perfect for kids, for they are sure to love some fun in the sand. is rewarding. If with
The shallow waters of Arambol and Palolem are safe for kids, Baga and Calangute Toy train is a must‑have experience
older children, a visit
perfect for some fun watersports. If you are done with beaches, you can even head to the Pykara Falls could be fun for your family. When in Ooty, there isn't much to do other
out to the Spice Village in Ponda. than be cool, relax and repeat. (Courtesy : Outlook Traveller) Photos: Shutterstock
TheSouthAsianTimes.info INDIA FEATURES April 13-19, 2019 19

Digital content renders Cinematograph Act obsolete

In a new trend now we have a line-up of streaming content providers, which majorly deliver
content that is morbid, gory, semi-pornographic, drugs and all those things that are repulsive to a
normal entertainment seeker and the family audience. Yet, they enjoy an open, unhindered run on
your small screens while the censor board makes all kinds of demands from a feature film producer.
By Vinod Mirani mob negates their certification and blocks a
How come the film film? Padmaavat, Manikarnika and so many

W
hen a fad invades India, it does so
in hordes. May it be mobile manu‑
facturers, car makers, and so on
and so forth. But, now, we have a line‑up of
streaming content providers. They enjoy an
open, unhindered run on your small screens.
Usually, the films with family entertainment,
RomComs or mildly plausible action films
work (Salman Khan types). The religious and
saas bahu family themes have been hijacked
by TV channels. Now suddenly we are into
this genre called nationalism/patriotism and
biopics. But, that market is flooded and all
future announcements for forthcoming films
seem to be on patriotism and biopics! The
thing is, those people who want to watch
these films, they are mainly available in cine‑
ma halls. These films would not be as much
fun on a smartphone/tablet screen, also
known as Over The Top (OTT).
The content providers seem to have decid‑
ed to capture the attention as well as the ini‑
tial eyeballs through a nonconventional way;
providing content which is not available on
cinema screens. That is to majorly deliver
content that is morbid, gory, semi porno‑
graphic, drugs and all those things that are
repulsive to a normal entertainment seeker
and the family audience. Now this is the con‑
tent designed for personal viewing with no
one else watching over your shoulder!
The target viewer is the youth and the pur‑
pose is to change their taste and preferences.
Indian, Spanish, Mexican, all the content that
I scanned through had gore, sex, and all that
as common as well as the dominant factors.
While providing such content, there are also
some decent features but not enough yet.
But, how long can this trend last? There
was an era when Malayalam films with a lot
of titillation and suggestive sex were dubbed
in Hindi language and, for the interior audi‑
ence, interpolation was a regular practice as
explicit sex scenes from porn films were
added. They worked for a while but faded
soon.
So, the issue is, while the Central Board of
Film Certification (CBFC) makes all kinds of
demands from a feature film producer before
his/her film is approved for public exhibition,
this morbid mobile OTT streaming goes
unchecked! The CBFC, in fact, has become
the moral guardian of the Indian moviegoer;
one to check on its ethics and morals!
Pahlaj Nihalani, the recent past Chairman
of the CBFC, asked to delete a kissing scene
from a Bond film from some 15 seconds to
six seconds. Isn't that ridiculous considering
that Nihalani in real life can't finish a sen‑
tence without adding a couple of BCs and
MCs no matter if women or kids are around!
Is it possible that a single panel member of
the examining committee of CBFC, who
watches films to rate them, has never
watched an illicit porn film? And, to think
that these people think a film is kosher only
‘PM Narendra Modi’
(starring Vivek
Oberoi) is held up in
the run up to
elections, while
‘Modi: Journey Of
A Common Man’ is
already streaming
on people's mobiles?
for six seconds, not 15! Do this politically
connected panel members really qualify to sit
in judgment over what the people should
watch? That has been an eternal debate.
The CBFC does not work on precedents.
Does not matter that a number of films,
Hollywood as well as Indian with lengthier
kissing scenes, have been passed with UA
certificate! There is no consistency in policy.
As is the wont of Indians, a seat of authority
robs them of logic. It is a high to be able to
judge others, especially when in an of ficial
position. As a rule, this lot found fault with
every film presented for clearing. For exam‑
ple, the examining committee suggested 14
cuts to a children‑oriented film, Mr India, in
1980. I can quote numerous such examples.
But, the issue is about parity. That is to say,
while almost all other mediums are free of a
watchdog, why are films censored? Why not
OTT content? Come to think of it, what does
the 'power' that the CBFC panel members
and the Chairman amount to when a motely
other examples.
Coming back to streaming content and
films, how come the film, PM Narendra Modi,
is denied even the courtesy of a screening for
the examining committee yet while the
streaming episodes on the same subject,
Modi, are already on people's mobiles? So,
how is the CBFC and Censor Certificate rele‑
vant anymore when a biopic on a person is
blocked indefinitely while the same subject
OTT platform, Modi: Journey Of A Common
Man, produced by Eros Now, has already
started streaming?
There are voices that the OTT content
should come under CBFC certification. It is
reported that at the CBFC, while the films
from big makers are cleared out of turn so
that they can meet their scheduled release
dates, makers of smaller films have to wait a
long time for that kind favor from the cen‑
sors? In that case, suppose OTT content had
to pass through censors, what would be the
scene? Would it be the Amazon and Netflix
that will get priority or a score of others who
apply? After all, big shots get priority!
Imagine the chaos that can follow. A 30‑
minute episode can end up being chopped
off to 15 minutes and the second episode of
a series may appear weeks after the previous
one!
Also, considering every other so‑called
group or organization or a community can
ignore CBFC clearance and block a film's
release, the Board means nothing. And, this
despite the highest court order ages back
that the CBFC is the ultimate authority on
cinema content! Something needs to be set
right in the Cinematograph Act. To start with,
the word Digital Content, should be made
part of the Act.
Vinod Mirani is a veteran film writer and
box office analyst

'Modi ‑ Journey Of A Common Man':

Idolizing but not propagandist
By Subhash K Jha Shukla, a Gujarati, digs deep into Modi's self‑philosophy.
Through lengthy debates and monologues, which can be tax‑

A
very thin line divides passion from propaganda. Films
about personages we admire, specially the living
ones, tend to lose their focus and blur the lines of
objectivity as the maker is emotionally too close to the sub‑
ject to give us a comprehensive picture of both the glory and
flaws that constitute greatness.
In this Modi biopic, director Umesh Shukla and his writers
Mihir Bhuta and Radhika Anand have attempted to give us a
comprehensive, sincere and factual view of a life remarkably
rich and mottled. This adherence to the straight and narrow
path tends to make the narrative somewhat sluggish and
tedious.
ing for the non‑believer, the series builds a convincing
construction depicting the phenomenal rise to power of a
contemporary politician who defines a self‑built legacy.
Little incidents and forgotten anecdotes from the PM's past
are resurrected with warmth and sincerity and authentic
Gujarati locations help. These may not interest the average
web watcher who binge‑watches "Sacred Games". But "Modi:
Journey Of a Common Man" has a certain sincerity in its
tone of narration. Even on the level of hagiography, this web
series shows admirable restraint and a genuine faith in the
politics of a national leader who wants to change the face of
Indian politics.
 20 April 13-19, 2019
I was eager to make Soniaji country's
next PM: Lalu Prasad Yadav
HIGHS IN DELHI,
LOWS IN BIHAR
I
was determined to see the end of the BJP‑
led government at the Centre, because I
believed that both Bihar and the rest of
the country had suffered as a consequence of
this party's rise. Central leaders, especially
those belonging to Bihar, had been placing
obstacle after obstacle in the smooth func‑
tioning of the state government under Rabri
Devi. Nationally, there was a sense that the
oppressed classes as well as the minorities
were getting a raw deal. Besides, the BJP had
become overconfident, and that had led to
arrogance among many of its leaders. It was
this mix of overconfidence and arrogance
which led the BJP to launch the 'India
Shining' campaign. The party was under the
illusion that its victory in the 2004 Lok
Sabha polls was a mere formality, and that
Vajpayee was certain to return to power. I
was to play a crucial role in bringing the cur‑
tains down on the Vajpayee Government.
It may be recalled that I had helmed a part‑
nership between the RJD and the Congress.
My popularity among the people of the state,
the tireless efforts of my party workers, the
work put in by my allies ‑‑ all combined to
bear fruit. We pulled off a miraculous victory, Pradesh and debuted in Parliament. The con‑
winning 29 of the 40 Lok Sabha
seats in truncated Bihar, after the
creation of Jharkhand. The RJD
alone secured 22 seats. Paswan's
LJP and the Congress won four
and three seats, respectively. The
BJP and the Janata Dal (United) ‑‑
the Samata Party had merged
with the JD(U) ‑‑ had to be content
with just six and five seats,
respectively.
The poor show of the BJP‑led
alliance in Bihar contributed
significantly to its overall low
tally of seats nationwide, lead‑
ing to its exit from power. I had Excerpts from 'Gopalganj to Raisina: My Political Journeyʼ
not only kept the RJD flag fly‑ (Rupa), by Lalu Prasad Yadav, former Indian railway
ing high at a time when most
observers thought that the
Vajpayee‑led BJP would triumph, but also
facilitated the return of the Congress to
power after a gap of eight years ‑‑ its last
regime was that of P.V. Narasimha Rao's,
whose tenure ended in 1996.
Perhaps, even more than some Congress
leaders, I was eager to make Sonia ji the
country's next prime minister. Over the
years, the RJD's bonds with the Congress had
strengthened. At a time when a section of
senior Congress leaders was opposed to her
BOOK EXCERPT
leadership, and partners were unsure of their
continuance in the Congress camp, the RJD
had emerged as the most credible ally of the choice. The Congress MPs were deflated, and
Congress. The Congress‑RJD partnership was
‑‑ and is ‑‑ based on a common ideology to
promote secularism and save the idea of
India, as enshrined in our Constitution.
Months after taking over as Congress presi‑ not that Congress leaders did not like Dr
dent, Sonia Gandhi had successfully contest‑
ed the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seat from Uttar
minister and CM of Bihar.
stituency had sentimental value for her; it
had been represented by her mother‑in‑law
and former prime minister, Indira Gandhi.
Thereafter, in 1999, Sonia Gandhi became
the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok
Sabha. She had criss‑crossed the country,
campaigning on the theme of aam aadmi
(common man) to blunt the BJP's India
Shining campaign. Despite her relative inex‑
perience in electoral politics, she played a
leading role in the Congress's comeback to
power in 2004. I was the backbone of the
'common man' drive; after all, it was this sec‑
tion of society, the aam aadmi, to whose
upliftment I had devoted my political career.
Sonia ji had surprised not just her opponents,
but also many of those from within her party
with the seasoned manner in which she led
the Congress campaign, overcoming many
hurdles along the way, including her 'accept‑
ability' and the language constraints.
Obviously, she was best suited to replace
Vajpayee as prime minister. Not surprisingly,
the newly‑elected Congress MPs unanimous‑
ly elected her their leader and pitched for her
to be the new prime minister. But Sonia ji, in
a dramatic manner, refused to accept the
mantle. There has been much speculation
since then on why she let go of the opportu‑
nity. But whatever the reasons, she declined
and suggested the name of Dr Manmohan
Singh ‑ a veteran economist with vast experi‑
ence in governance‑as her prime ministerial
very reluctantly accepted Dr Singh's name.
Readers will recall the dramatic scenes that
were witnessed on the day when Sonia ji
declined to become the prime minister. It is
Singh. They had high regard for him, and
they hadn't forgotten the time when he, as
the country's finance minister in Rao's gov‑
ernment, had turned around the econo‑
my, bringing it back from the brink of
collapse. However, they had fought the
elections under Sonia Gandhi's leader‑
ship and wanted her to lead the country.
While Congress leaders were reconcil‑
ing to the situation, I was adamant. I had
22 MPs from the RJD, and believed that
it would be a personal victory for me if
Sonia ji, against whom the NDA had used
disrespectful language besides conduct‑
ing a malicious campaign against me,
were to become the prime minister. I
was in no mood to accept anyone other
than her. Sonia ji called me up first.
She insisted on my accepting Dr Singh
as the prime minister. I refused. Then,
she came to my residence, accompanied
by Dr Singh, and sought to reason with
me. She even made Dr Singh request me
to accept him as the prime minister. I was in
a fix. On the one hand, I was hell‑bent on
seeing her as the new prime minister. On the
other hand, I could not turn down her
request, more so because she had taken the
trouble to visit my residence along with Dr
Singh. I finally relented, and Manmohan
Singh became the PM. Sonia ji took charge as
chairperson of the Congress‑led United
Progressive Alliance (UPA), which had many
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
parties, including the RJD, as part of the gov‑
ernment.
DYNASTY
POLITICS: MUCH
MALIGNED
With my three children, Misa, Tej Pratap
and Tejashwi, becoming active in politics, my
opponents began to attack me for promoting
what they called dynasty politics. These are
baseless and uncalled‑for allegations. As par‑
ents, we are supposed to help our children in
pursuing their passion. Usually, children are
influenced by the atmosphere they are born
and brought up in. I don't find anything
wrong with the progeny of lawyers, doctors,
writers and professors adopting the vocation
of their parents. Rabri and I never interfered
with Misa when she was doing her MBBS
course. We didn't interfere with Tejashwi's
passion for cricket. Tej Pratap is good at
playing the flute, apart from working for the
party. They are all adults, doing what they
like. We, of course, supported and guided
them when they showed an inclination
towards politics.
There are several instances in other par‑
ties, where leaders have promoted their chil‑
dren in politics. I find nothing wrong with it. I
was a poor cowherd's son. I had not inherited
politics from my family. I struggled hard to
gain acceptance and recognition from the
people. Some elections I won, others I lost.
But I never cast aspersions on any of my
political opponents for promoting their chil‑
dren in politics, even when mine were young
and not in politics. In fact, I joined student
politics well before I was married to Rabri
Devi. Misa was born when I was in jail in
1975. I don't believe in the petty politics of
attacking my opponents simply because their
sons and daughters are in politics. I don't
care if someone attacks me, for I know that
my children, after attaining adulthood, have
chosen the vocation of their liking.
Moreover, I have promoted hundreds of
youth ‑ particularly belonging to the
oppressed and minority communities ‑ in pol‑
itics.
More than 60 per cent of the 80 MLAs of
our party are new entrants to politics. I have
identified fresh political talent among the
weaker sections and have guided them. It is
not proper to name my peers, but I have
given tickets to the sons and daughters of
many of my contemporaries to contest elec‑
tions. We cannot stop change. The new gen‑
eration is better at connecting with the youth
and getting to know their aspirations.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
India planning to attack
us: Pakistan Minister
Islamabad: India is planning to
attack Pakistan after staging a
"mishap" in Jammu and Kashmir
and this could happen between
April 16 and 20, Pakistan Foreign
Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi
said.
He urged the international com‑
munity to reprimand India for what
he said was its "irresponsible con‑
duct", the Dawn reported.
Qureshi told the media in Multan
that Islamabad had "reliable intelli‑
gence that India is devising a new
plan" to attack Pakistan.
"I am speaking responsibly, I hold
a position of responsibility, and I
know the words I utter will be
picked up by the international
media," he said.
"Preparations are being made (by
India), and there are chances of
another attack against Pakistan.
According to our information, the
action could be taken between April
16‑20.
"A new mishap could be staged in
Indian Kashmir, just like (the)
Pulwama (attack). And its purpose
will be to justify their (India's)
of fensive against Pakistan and to
increase diplomat ic pressure
against Islamabad," he said.
MALDIVES RULING
PARTY CELEBRATES
LANDSLIDE WIN
Male: The ruling party
in the Maldives cele‑
brated a historic victo‑
ry as preliminary
results showed its
candidates secured a
landslide win in the
parliamentary elec‑
tions.
According to the
Elections Commission
figures, the Maldivian
Democratic Party won
62 out of the 87 seats
in the People's Majlis,
the archipelago
nation's legislature,
reports Efe News. In
the previous parlia‑
mentary elections
held in 2009 and
2014, the MDP was President and Maldivian Democratic
unable to secure more Party leader Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.
than 26 seats.
This is the first time in the
island nation's history that a
single party has secured such a
majority in parliament since
the advent of multi‑party
democracy following the new
SUBCONTINENT
INDIA REJECTS
PAKISTAN'S
ALLEGATION
New Delhi: India rejected as "irre‑
sponsible and preposterous"
Pakistan's statement that New
De lhi will attack it again and
accused Islamabad of trying to
whip up war hysteria in the
region. "India rejects the irrespon‑
sible and preposterous statement
by the Foreign Minister of
Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah
Pakistan with a clear objective of
Mahmood Qureshi said he is
whipping up war hysteria in the
speaking ʻresponsiblyʼ.
reg ion," Raveesh Kumar, the
His reference was to the February spokesperson of the Ministry of
14 suicide bombing in Pulwama in External Af fairs, said in a state‑
Indian Kashmir that killed 40 ment. "T his public g immick
Central Reserve Police Force troop‑ appears to be a call to Pakistan‑
ers. The Pakistan‑based Jaish‑e‑ based terrorists to undertake ter‑
Mohammed (JeM) claimed respon‑ ror attack in India," he said.
sibility, triggering major tensions Pakistan has been advised to use
between New Delhi and Islamabad. the established diplomatic chan‑
"If it (action by India) happens, nels to "share actionable and cred‑
you can imagine the impact of the ible intelligence" it has about ter‑
occurrence on the peace and stabili‑ ror attacks, he added. "India
ty of the region," warned Qureshi. reserves the right to respond firm‑
He said that Pakistan had briefed ly and decisively to cross‑border
the UN Security Council's P5 mem‑ terrorist attack," the spokesman
bers over the issue. said.
19mn Bangladesh children
at risk from climate change
Dhaka: An estimated
19.4 million children
in Bangladesh, includ‑
ing half a million from
the Rohingya Muslim
minority, are exposed
to the most detrimen‑
tal and hazardous con‑
sequences of climate
change, the Unicef
said.
In a report released
in Dhaka, Geneva and
New York, Unicef said
more resources and
innovative pro‑
grammes were urgent‑
ly needed to avert the
danger that climate
change posed to poor
Bangladeshi children,
reports Efe news.
"Climate change is
deepening the environmental threat
faced by families in Bangladesh's
poorest communities, leaving them
unable to keep their children prop‑
erly housed, fed, healthy and edu‑
cated," said Unicef Executive
constitution of 2008.
Director Henrietta Fore, who visited
Solih, who became President
Bangladesh last month.
after the election on September
The results of the report titled, "A
23 last year as the candidate of
Gathering Storm: Climate Change
a four‑party coalition, wel‑
Clouds the Future of Children in
comed the result.
Bangladesh", were based on "exist‑
April 13-19, 2018 21
US disputes Indian claim
of hitting Pak's F‑16
Washington: India's
claim that one of its
pilots shot down a
Pakistani F‑16 fighter
jet in an aerial battle in
February "appears to be
wrong" as US personnel
counted Islamabad's F‑
16s and found none
missing, a US news
publication has report‑
Pakistan had invited the US
ed citing military of fi‑ to count its F‑16 planes.
cials.
Foreign Policy publi‑ media pieces of the AMRAAM
cation said in a report that two missile, fired by a Pakistani F‑
senior US defense of ficials 16, as an evidence.
with direct knowledge of the According to Foreign Policy,
situation said that "American one of the senior US defense
personnel recently counted officials with direct knowledge
Islamabad's F‑16s and found of the situat ion said that
none missing". Pakistan invited Washington
The Indian government had to physically count its F‑16
said that in a dog fight on planes after the incident as
February 27 ‑‑ a day after it part of an end‑user agreement
carried out strikes on a terror signed when the foreign mili‑
training camp in Pakistan's tary sale was finalized.
Balakot ‑‑ Indian Air Force The publication said a "US
pilot Abhinandan Varthaman count of Pakistan's F‑16 fleet
shot down an F‑16, one of the has found that all the jets are
Pakistani Air Force jets that present and accounted for, a
tried to target Indian military direct contradiction to India's
facilities. claim that it shot down one of
The Indian Air Force had on the fig hter jets during a
February 28 displayed to the February clash.
Around 12
million of the
worst‑affected
children live in
and around
rivers.
ing available data" and focus group Bangladesh and regularly burst
discussions. their banks.
Unicef found that Bangladesh's Another 4.5 million, including
flat topography, dense population almost half a million Rohingya
and weak infrastructure make it refugee children living in fragile
uniquely vulnerable to the powerful bamboo and plastic shelters, live in
and unpredictable meteorological coastal areas that are regularly
forces that climate change is exac‑ struck by powerful cyclones.
erbating. Another three million children
Around 12 million of the worst‑ live further inland, where farming
affected children live in and around communities suffer increasing peri‑
rivers, which flow through ods of drought.
 22 April 13-19, 2019
May warned of ouster if UK
forced to fight Euro polls
B
ritish Prime Minister
Theresa May is
being warned by her
rebel Cabinet MPs that they
will move to oust her within
weeks if the UK is forced to
participate in the European
elections next month and
extend its European Union
(EU) membership beyond
June.
The MPs from the ruling
Conservative Party were
believed to have become
increasingly angry at the
prospect of voters being
asked to go to the polls to
elect Members of European
Parliament (MEP) three
years after the Brexit refer‑
endum, the Guardian reported. The warn‑
ings came as the Prime Minister made a
last desperate appeal to MPs to back a deal, what people voted for, and to do that we
saying there was an increasing danger
Brexit would "slip though our fingers".
"Because Parliament has made clear it
will stop the UK leaving without a deal, we
now have a stark choice: leave the
European Union with a deal or do not leave
at all.
"The longer this takes, the greater the
risk of the UK never leaving at all. It would
mean letting the Brexit that the British peo‑ approved by the House of Commons.
US to designate Iran's Revolutionary While Guterres tries to broker
Guards as terror organization peace, conflict escalates in Libya
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was founded in April 1979.
Washington: The US is expected to des‑
ignate Iran's Islamic Revolutionary
Guard Corps (IRGC) as a foreign terror‑
ist organization as early as next week,
according to an administration official.
The designation decision, formally
under the State Department's purview,
is taking on heightened importance as
part of the White House's increasingly
aggressive strategy towards Iran, CNN
quoted the official as saying.
The IRGC was founded in April 1979
following the Iranian Revolution that
same year that involved the of the
monarch, Mohammad Reza Shah
Pahlavi
A branch of Iran's Armed Forces, it
has already been labeled as a terrorist
INTERNATIONAL
British PM Theresa May made a desperate
appeal to MPs to back a deal.
ple voted for slip through our fingers. I will
not stand for that. It is essential we deliver
need to get a deal over the line," she said.
Following her appeal, Conservative MP
Nigel Evans said that if May failed to deliv‑
er Brexit and all she could do was secure a
long extension at an EU summit on April
10, she would face an overwhelming pres‑
sure to step down.
The UK is due to leave the EU on April 12
and, as yet, no withdrawal deal has been
org anizat ion by Saudi Arabia and
Bahrain.
A spokesperson for the White House
National Security Council declined to
comment and the State Department did
not respond to a request for comment.
Defense officials have told CNN that
US troops in Syria and Iraq often find
themselves operating in close proximity
to members of the IRGC.
The development comes after Brian
Hook, the State Department's special
representative for Iran, told the media
that "under the cover of the Syrian war,
the IRGC is now trying to plant military
roots in Syria and establish a new
strategic base to threaten Syria's neigh‑
bors such as Israel".
Will annex West Bank settlements
if re‑elected: Netanyahu
Tel Aviv: Israel Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu said he would
extend the country's sovereignty over
parts of the West Bank if re‑elected in
the April 9 legislative polls, a major
policy shift that would stir Arab oppo‑
sition.
Netanyahu said that he was contem‑
plating moves that would upend
decades of the nation's policy acknowl‑
edging that the lands it seized in the
1967 war would be part of a negotiat‑
ed settlement with the Palestinians, Efe
news reported. The Prime Minister's
apparent push to cement control over
the West Bank comes in the wake of
victories in getting the US to acknowl‑
edge Jerusalem as the country's capital
and its sovereignty over the Golan
Heights seized from Syria in 1967 as
Israeli territory. In recent weeks,
Netanyahu has become more strident in
speaking about lands seized, saying terri‑
tory taken in a defensive war need not be
returned.
Earlier, an Israeli Channel 12 inter‑
viewer asked Netanyahu why, with the
broad consensus of Israel's right wing
over the sovereignty for the settlements,
he hadn't annexed or placed Israeli sov‑
ereignty over parts of the West Bank
during four years of leading a right‑wing
United Nations: As Libya teetered on the brink
of an all‑out civil war, UN Secretary‑General
Antonio Guterres met rival leaders in an effort
to broker peace, but left the country with a
"deep concern and a heavy heart", while a
rebel offensive neared Tripoli.
Hoping to stop the fighting, Guterres went to
Benghazi to meet Khalifa Haftar, the leader of
the rebel Libyan National Army (LNA), whose
forces were reported to be advancing on the
capital.
According to a transcript released by his
office, he told reporters as he left Benghazi: "I
leave Libya with a deep concern and a heavy
heart. I still hope it will be possible to avoid a
bloody confrontation in and around Tripoli."
Earlier, Guterres met Prime Minister Fayez
al‑Serraj, High Council President Khaled
Mishri and other leaders of the internationally
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu
has become more strident in
speaking about seized lands.
government. "We are on the way; we are
in discussions about it and other things...
Everyone understands the next term will
be fateful," he said. Israeli sovereignty
would ensure that Israeli civil law
applies in its settlements there, while
annexing them would claim the territory
outright.
Israel already controls the West Bank
militarily, allowing Palestinians a limited
form of autonomy in a few densely popu‑
lated pockets.
recognized government the LNA is seeking to
overthrow. According to some reports, Egypt
and the United Arab Emirates were said to be
backing Haftar.
On a trip to the Middle East, Guterres visited
the war‑torn country to promote the UN‑
backed Libyan National Conference later this
year to bring about reconciliation when he
was caught up in the escalating conflict.
In the bloom of the Arab Spring that swept
many leaders in the region from power, a civil
war broke out in Libya in 2011.
Backed by the US under former President
Barack Obama and by the NATO, the rebel
forces took Tripoli and dictator Muammar
Gaddafi was overthrown and killed.
Although elections were held the next year
and a government was installed, chaos pre‑
vailed and conflict returned by 2014.
Security forces on patrol in
Libyan capital, Tripoli.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info BUSINESS April 13-19, 2019 23

India's economic growth 'too much' driven

by domestic demand: World Bank
Washington, DC: India's economic growth in
recent years has been "too much" driven by
domestic demand and its exports were about
one third of its potential, a World Bank offi‑
cial said, asserting that the next government
needs to focus on export‑led growth.
Praising attempts to liberalize markets
within India, Hans Timmer, World Bank Chief
Economist for the South Asia Region said
"that is what is needed to become more com‑
petitive."
"At the same time you've also seen in the
last couple of years that the current account
deficit widened ‑ an indication that increas‑
ingly growth came from the non‑tradable sec‑
tor ‑‑ from the domestic sector, and that
makes it difficult to export more, Timmer told
PTI in an interview.
The polling for first phase of seven‑phase
parliamentary polls in the country is sched‑
uled to take place on April 11, with the last
phase on May 19 and the results will be
announced on May 23.
In the last five years, he said, India's overall
growth was "too much" driven by domestic
demand, which resulted in double digit
growth of imports, and four to five per cent
growth in exports.
"In more recent months, that turned around
somewhat. But the broader picture was that
that's a minus, he said.
The pluses were that we have seen the GST
trying to create more flexibility within the
country, so that it's easier to trade between
states. That's what you need if you want to
trade also with foreign countries, he said.
Praising attempts to liberalize markets
within India, Hans Timmer, World Bank
Chief Economist for the South Asia
Region said "that is what is needed to
become more competitive."
Responding to a question, the World Bank
official said the focus of the next government
should be on reducing the stimulus of domes‑
tic demand.
"That would be one. I think looking at trade
liberalization on the import side ‑ that would
be another to create more competition. I
would look at what people feel as an impedi‑
ment in the labor market. Is it difficult to go
to those new jobs? What about the startups of
young people do they feel restrictions or not?
he said, adding that it is also about female
labor force participation.
"I think, the most important thing is the
understanding that you need export‑led
growth because that's where you increase
productivity when you compete in interna‑
tional markets; that's where you gain knowl‑
edge by interacting with competitors and
with customers abroad. And so, it is that
mindset," the top World Bank of ficial said.
India, Timmer said, is exporting only 10 per
cent of its GDP.
"What they should have exported is 30 per
cent of the export of GDP, given all their char‑
acteristics. India is a big country, so normally
a big country doesn't export that much in per
cent of their GDP because when you're small
you're a lot more open.
"But even for India, 30 percent would have
been normal if you look at the experience of
other countries. It's only 10 per cent. So that's
an enormous gap. And the gap is widening in
the last couple of years, he told PTI.
According to him, friction between India
and Pakistan is unhelpful to the trade and
economic growth in the region.
The lack of regional integration is not the
main course of the under performance in
exports. And that's often the assumption.
When people look at South Asia, immediately
the problem of very limited regional integra‑
tion jumps up, he said.
A latest report of the World bank on South
Asia, he said, asserts that the economic under
performance of South Asian countries is
mainly because they are locked on fundamen‑
tal issues within the domestic economies that
have prevented the countries to become
much more export‑led, like one sees in East
Asia. Trade liberalization, flexible labor mar‑
kets skills, trying to address the big problem
of the difference between the formal econo‑
my and the informal economy, he said are
some of his recommendations for the South
Asian countries.
"So, it's a lot of domestic issues also. It's not
just the trade policies. A lot of domestic issues
that have to be addressed to unleash that
potential that has not been utilized now in
exports. It's not one single issue that can
solve, he said.
Responding to a question, Timmer said the
South Asian countries need to learn from
China. "The fact that China has been so com‑
petitive for so long means that China did
something right whereas South Asia didn't do
it right. There was a clear focus in China to
have export‑led growth and to integrate into
global markets. And you see a sharp increase
in productivity at all. This is not an explana‑
tion that we couldn't compete. Somehow, the
Chinese did it better than South Asia, he said.
The top bank official asserted that China is
a "big opportunity" for South Asia.
The slowdown in China is not a cyclical
slowdown. It's not because they don't demand
anymore. They are slowing down because of
the supply side. They're running out of cheap
labor in general because of their success.
They are no longer that competitive, and they
have now that policy that they want to rebal‑
ance their economy much more towards
domestic services, less towards exports," he
said.
That means that it has become easier to
export to China which is very important,
Timmer said. It has become easier to compete
with the Chinese. So for me China is, what is
happening at the moment, is a big opportuni‑
ty for South Asia, he stressed.

Lupin recalls over Facebook, Instagram could be banned

12,000 cartons of birth in the UK for hosting terrorist content
control pills from US
New Delhi: Drug firm
Lupin is recalling over
12,000 cartons of
Fayosim tablets, used to
prevent pregnancy,
from the American mar‑
ket, as per a report of
the US health regulator.
The reason for recall
is "Failed
impurities/degradation
specifications: out‑of‑
specificat ion results
observed in related substance test
in Ethinyl Estradiol tablets USP
0.01mg at 12 month long term
stability study," the Enforcement
Report of the United States Food
and Drug Administration (USFDA)
said.
Lupin Pharmaceuticals Inc is
recalling 12,464 cartons of the
Fayosim (levonorgestre l and
ethinyl estradiol) tablets USP, (0.15
mg/0.02 mg, 0.15 mg/0.025 mg,
0.15 mg/0.03 mg) and ethinyl
estradiol tablets USP (0.01 mg)
packaged in 1 extended‑cycle wal‑
let of 91 tablets packed in a pouch,
it added. The product was manu‑
factured by Lupin Ltd at its
Pithampur facility in Mad hya
Pradesh.
The voluntary ongoing nation‑
wide recall is a class II recall, the
report by the regulator said.
As per the USFDA, a class II
recall is initiated in a "situation in
which use of or exposure to a
violative product may cause tem‑
porary or medically reversible
adverse health consequences or
where the probability of serious
adverse health consequences is
remote.
New York: Technology firms includ‑
ing Facebook, Instagram and
Twitter face “substantial” fines or a
UK ban under a new law if they
donʼt act swiftly enough to remove
content that encourages terrorism
and child sexual exploitation and
abuse.
The companiesʼ directors could
also be held personally liable if ille‑
gal content is not taken down with‑
in a short and pre‑determined time‑
frame, the Home Of fice said. The
exact level of fines will be examined
during a 12 week consultation fol‑
lowing the legislationʼs launch on
Monday. The spread of fake news
and interference in elections will
also be tackled. The need for a new
Carlos Ghosn's wife asks France to
'do more' for ex-Nissan boss: Report
New York: Carole Ghosn, wife of
former Nissan boss Carlos
Ghosn, has flown to Paris to
appeal to the French government
to help her husband and said the
(PTI) government "should do more for
law over a voluntary code has been
highlighted by the terrorist attack
in New Zealand last month in which
50 Muslims were killed while
footage was live‑streamed online. In
the UK, the case of 14‑year‑old
Molly Russell has also focused
minds. According to her father, the
teenager killed herself in 2017
after viewing self‑harm and suicide
content online. “Put simply, the tech
companies have not done enough to
protect their users and stop this
shocking content from appearing in
the first place,” Home Secretary
Sajid Javid said in a statement
released by his of fice. “Our new
proposals will protect UK citizens
and ensure tech firms will no longer
him", the Financial Times report‑
ed on Sunday.
"I think the French government
should do more for him. I don't
think they've done enough. I
don't think he's had enough sup‑
be able to ignore their responsibili‑
ties.”
Search engines alongside online
messaging services and file hosting
sites will also come under the remit
of a new regulator. Annual reports
on what companies have done to
remove and block harmful content
will be required and streaming sites
aimed at children, such as Youtube
Kids, will be required to block
harmful content such as violent
imagery or porn.
The move comes after Facebook
Chief Executive Of ficer Mark
Zuckerberg called March 30 for “a
more active role for governments
and regulators.”
(Source: Bloomberg.com)
port and he's calling for assis‑
tance. As a French citizen, it
should be a right", she told the
FT in an interview before board‑
ing her flight out of Japan late on
Friday.
 24 April 13-19, 2019 SPORTS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Kings XI ride Rahul, Agarwal 50s to beat Sunrisers

Mohali: Kings XI Punjab made
heavy weather of an easy run‑
chase but in the end rode stylish
half centuries from K.L. Rahul
and Mayank Agarwal to edge‑
past Sunrisers Hyderabad by six
w ickets in a thrilling Indian
Premier League (IPL) encounter
here on Monday.
Auditioning for a berth in the
World Cup squad, opener Rahul
remained not out at 71 of f 53
balls to notch up his third half‑
century of the season with the
help of seven fours and one six as
goo d friend Agarwal (55; 43
balls; 3x4; 3x6) matched him
with equal gusto.
Chasing a modest 151 for victo‑
ry, the pair added 114 runs for
the second wicket after the hosts
lost Chris Gayle (16) early to a
all Rahul‑Agarwal show from
there on, as the Karnataka pair
paced their innings to perfection
and played some delightful shots
down the ground. While Rahul
brought up his fifty in 34 balls,
Agarwal took 40 deliveries to get
there.
Agarwal ‑‑ who was dropped by
Yusuf Pathan on 40 ‑‑ holed out
to Vijay Shankar at deep mid‑
w icket of f Sandeep Sharma
(2/21) in the 18th over.
But just when it looked like the
damage had already been done,
David Miller (1) and Mandeep
Singh (2) threw their wickets
Kings XI Punjab's Mayank Agarwal celebrates his
away to Sandeep in the same
half century during the match against
Sunrisers Hyderabad, in Mohali. (Photo: Surjeet Yadav/IANS) over and Siddarth Kaul in the
19th to leave the game on the
Rashid Khan 1/20) de livery for a six, gett ing caug ht by edge with 11 runs needed in the
which the southpaw tried to hit Deepak Hooda at long on. It was final over. Mohammad Nabi gave
just five runs away from the first
three balls before Rahul hit a
magnificent straight drive for
four to then score the winning
runs off a David Warner misfield
as Punjab won with one ball to
spare, putting up 151/4 in 19.5
overs.
Earlier, Warner struck an
unbeaten half‑century but Punjab
bow lers put in a disciplined
ef fort to restrict Sunrisers to
150/4 after skipper R Ashwin
asked them to bat first.
In‑form Warner brought up his
third IPL fifty of the season as he
scored an unbeaten 70 (62 balls,
4x6, 6x1), but it was an unchar‑
acterist ic kno ck where the
destructive Australian left‑hander
struggled with timing as he car‑
ried his bat through the innings.

Ganguly writes to ombudsman, India selectors to pick

clears stand on conflict
New Delhi: Cricket Association of Bengal
(CAB) President and Delhi Capitals advi‑
sor Sourav Ganguly has replied to the
Board of Control for Cricket in India
(BCCI) ombudsman and ethics officer D.K.
Jain after the latter asked him to clear his
stand on allegations of conflict of inter‑
est.
Speaking to IANS, a senior BCCI official
in the know of developments said that the
former India skipper in his letter to the
ombudsman has made his position clear
and also clarified that he was not part of
any committee that was overseeing the
organisation of the Indian Premiere
League. "At present I do not hold any post
whatsoever or howsoever in the BCCI. I
am neither a member of the Apex Council
of the BCCI nor an of fice bearer nor a
member of any of the Cricket Committees
const ituted by the BCCI under its
Constitution. "I am also not connected
with the administration, management or
running of the IPL by being a member of
any of the committees or other organisa‑
tional units set up by the BCCI in connec‑
tion with the IPL.
"Previously I had been a part of the
BCCI Technical Committee; the IPL
Technical Committee and the IPL
Governing Council.
"I have resigned and/or withdrawn
myself from all the said Committees. I am
not a part of any committee/council/enti‑
ty which has control or supervisory
power or powers of management or
administration of the IPL," Ganguly's let‑
Sourav Ganguly.
Ganguly has said in his letter as per the
of ficial. "Neither Red Chilies
Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. nor its franchise
team viz. KKR has any relationship or link
with CAB. CAB has no stake or interest or
rights in KKR or in the company which
owns it. CAB does not control, own, man‑
age, advice or administer either KKR or
the company which owns it. During the
IPL seasons, CAB merely lets out the sta‑
dium to the said franchise team against
payment of consideration," he has said.
On the question of him going against
the rules of conflict as per the BCCI con‑
stitution, Ganguly wrote: "T he spirit
behind the aforesaid philosophy is that no
WC squad on April 15
New Delhi: The national selectors led by M.S.K.
Prasad will meet on April 15 in Mumbai to pick
the squad for the 2019 World Cup in England,
starting May 30. India are considered one of
the favorites going into this edition of the
World Cup. The cut‑off date is April 23 and the
selectors have been waiting to watch the per‑
formance of some of the players in the ongoing
Indian Premier League considering that the
position of the number four batsman and the
fourth fast bowler is still up for grabs.
Speaking to IANS, a senior BCCI official said
that the selectors wanted to wait a bit before
finalizing the squad and the ongoing IPL held
them to take a look at some of the players who
are in the radar to fill a couple of spots.
"The selectors wanted to take it easy as they
had time till April 23 to send in the squad for
the World Cup. With the IPL on, it always helps
to see how some of the boys are playing," the
official explained.
India team skipper Virat Kohli.
Vijay Shankar is another player who could be
looked at as an option considering that he has a Navdeep Saini has been very impressive in
been looking to bat up in the order for the IPL for Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Sunrisers Hyderabad in this IPL. Skipper Virat Kohli and coach Ravi Shastri's
The fourth pacer's slot is something that the input will definitely be asked for before a final
selectors will be sweating over as someone like decision is made.
Team Pld Won Lost Tied Pts
1 KKR 4 1 0 8
Indian 2 CSK 4 1 0 8

3 KXI 4 2 0 8
ter read. As per the official, the current
DC advisor has also mentioned about the
fact that he is in no way connected to
one holding a particular post should (by
dint of occupying another post) be in a
position to influence any organizational
Premier 4 SRH 3 3 0 6
Kolkata Knight Riders.
"Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) is a fran‑
chise cricket team owned by Red Chilies
unit/team under the aegis of the BCCI,
either to its benefit or to its prejudice”.
There were three complaints filed by
League 5 MIN 3 2 0 6

Entertainment Private Limited. This is a

company incorporated under the
Companies Act, 1956. I am neither a
cricket fans from West Bengal ‑‑ Bhaswati
Santua, Ranjit Seal and Abhijeet Standings 6 DCA 3 3 0 6

Mukherjee ‑‑ on how Ganguly as CAB 7 RJR 1 4 0 2

shareholder nor a director of the afore‑ chief can sit in Delhi Capitals dugout dur‑
said company. I have no stake whatsoever ing their match against KKR at the Eden
8 RCB 0 6 0 0
or howsoever in the said company," Gardens.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Shedding light on real problems facing the world
By Raveendra Nath
‘Ravi’ Batra
T
here is nothing artificial in
Ape k Mulayʼs new book
ʻEconomic Renaissance in
the Age of Artificial Intelligence.ʼ
His inte lligence is real and it
shines forth in this volume, which
is actually a collection of essays
from experts in various fields. The
book sheds light on real problems
facing the world in the areas of
technology, the environment, law,
psychology and above all spirituali‑
ty.
Once again Apek Mulay estab‑
lishes his claim as an original
thinker and a prolific writer. In
2018, he wrote about ʻNew
Macroeconomics,ʼ which was a
remarkable analysis of g lobal
poverty and the economy. This
year he has come out with a motley
collection of essays that offer pen‑
etrating insights in diverse areas.
An article from Satinder Paul
Singh sets the stage for analyzing
the impact of what is known as the
internet of things (IoT) on the
economy. This is followed by a
piece from Srinivas Adiki on how
the invent ion of Art ificial
TRIBUTE
Book series on Indian
spiritual mastersʼ Uma Vasudev was a writer of
lessons for life rare immensity and sensitivity
H
ome to many spiritual
and religious leaders,
India abounds in their
precious teachings. Bringing
their wisdom, usually in the
form of aphorisms, to guide
people is a 10‑book series
called 'Life Lessons' with its
first four featuring Moinuddin
Chist i, Guru Nanak, Adi
Shankara and Lord Mahavira
coming out soon.
Edited by Chennai‑based his‑
torian‑environmentalist
Nanditha Krishna, the series,
published by Aleph Book
Company, w ill be a simple
guide for those who may want
a spiritual explanation or solu‑
tion for the many conundrums
that life often poses. "T he
aphorisms in each book in this
series are culled from their
essential teachings and pre‑
sented in a simple and accessi‑
ble way," the publisher said.
"The world is changing and the
family support system is fading
away. We all know there have
been great masters but who
has the time to read their writ‑
ings?
"Each guru teaches us lessons
appropriate to a specific situa‑
Apek Mulay is a senior analyst,
blogger, visionary, and macro‑
economist and microeconomist
in the US semiconductor industry.
Intelligence (AI) will shape the
future. How the upcoming
blockchain technology interacts
with the global economy is exam‑
ined next. These technologies are
relatively new and are likely to rev‑
olutionize the financial services as
described by Shrikant Shete.
The book next turns to the envi‑
ronment. In ʻMonsters of our own
Makingʼ, Michael McAllum gives us
a glimpse of how poor planning of
various cities has ravaged the envi‑
ronment and what should be done
to counter that destruction in the
tion. There is no 'one size fits
all' solution in life. But there
are simple answers that have
been put together to guide
every individual. That's what
Life Lessons is all about,"
Krishna said. .
The first book "The Light In
All Is One" will sum up the
teachings Guru Nanak in his
550th birth anniversary year.
It is translated and edited by
Navkirat Sodhi.
The second book, "Live and
Let Others Live", will house the
core teachings of Mahavira ‑‑
the 24th Tirthankara of the
Jains ‑‑ that show one how to
lead a peaceful and fulfilling
life.
"Be Present in Every
Moment", edited by Babli
Parveen, will spell out Sufi
saint Moinuddin Chisti's key
teachings of charity and com‑
passion for the poor and help‑
less, and leading a pure life of
devotion to the Divine.
"You Are the Supreme Light"
which w ill spotlig ht Adi
Shankara's cornucopia of com‑
mentaries on ancient Indian
texts as well as original philo‑
sophical works.
BOOKS
future. Roar Bjonnes, on the other
hand, suggests that pollution is so
bad that green technologies alone
cannot save the environment. We
all have to develop an environmen‑
tal‑friendly awareness to do the
job. Will AI bring about a collabo‑
rative or predatory ecosystem has
been explored by Stephen Willis?
These three papers are superb;
they offer a deft analysis of current
environmental problems and what
needs to be done.
At this point, the book turns to
an entirely dif ferent area that
By Uma Nair
E
rudite and ele‑
gant, never
boastful, Uma
Vasudev was more
than a mere author
and columnist. She
was a perfect personi‑
fication of an individ‑
ual who did not need
to put on an act ‑ her
work spoke for itself.
Her track record as a
writer was impecca‑
ble.
Uma Vasudev was
the first editor of the
"India Today" maga‑
zine. She was also
author of two bestselling biogra‑
phies, both on Mrs Indira Gandhi.
I used to meet her at the home of
Khushwant Singh at Sujan Singh
Park in Delhi over cocktails and
there would be intricate, albeit
humorous conversations on poli‑
tics and the art of deception over
diplomatic cadences and innuen‑
does. Her smoky voice had a sex‑
iness that was indeed appealing.
In 1971 she wrote "Indira
Gandhi: Revolution in Restraint".
This fascinating biography with
over 150 rare and exquisite pho‑
April 13-19, 2019
makes a case for universal income.
The idea that many experts advo‑
cate today is that everyone should
be provided a Universal Basic
Income (UBI) to fulfill their mini‑
mum needs. While the idea is basi‑
cally sound, Matt Oppenheim cor‑
rectly points out that we should
make sure that UBI does not create
a culture of dependence if the
recipients of the UBI simply “hang
out” and do nothing useful.
As AI becomes commonplace in
the future, the global constitutions
will have to change to ensure that
prog ress of AI does not harm
human well‑being. This idea is ably
examined by Craig Runde.
Science and Spirituality are nor‑
mally considered to be poles apart.
Steven Richheimer neatly destroys
this misconception in his essay,
“T he New Age of Science and
Spirituality.” Next Dr.
Shambhushivananda further elabo‑
rates on this idea. He has a Ph.D. in
economics from the University of
Pennsylvania but has become an
Avadhuta (monk) to pursue a high‑
er calling. He is amply qualified to
write on “Meditat ion and
Consciousness.” His essay is
remarkable as it establishes a link
tographs was remarkable for its
intellectual quality and richness
of material.
In "Two Faces of Indira Gandhi"
(1977) Uma analyzed the meta‑
morphosis of the most important
woman in power in India, from a
leading international democrat
to an emergent dictator.
She often reminisced about
ʻRevolution in Restraintʼ. "I used
to travel with Indiraji and when‑
ever she would get time, we
would sit and chat for hours. She
was a charismatic leader. But at
25
among mind, matter and con‑
sciousness. Finally, the book turns
to purely economic issues and poli‑
cies. First, Navin Doshi examines
the global economy and pinpoints
the basic reason for the worldʼs
economic malaise. He complains
that the planet saves while America
spends, and this is the fundamental
problem behind several global
imbalances. Second, Apek Mulay,
also the editor of this book, offers
some original economic ideas with
an innovative business model in
the era of Artificial Intelligence to
solve the problem of poverty
around the world. He also exam‑
ines the Law of Social Cycle which
suggests that we are now in the
age of acqusitors in which acquisi‑
tive mentaility rules society. This
law suggests that only a revolution
can now end this age and bring
about a new era of compassion and
prosperity in which poverty disap‑
pears in America.
All in all, this book of essays is
worth reading for its varied contri‑
butions envisioning Mr. Mulayʼs
vision about how Prog ressive
Utilization Theory can solve the
most pressing economic issues
faced by mankind.
the same time, she
was very friendly
with people.
However, it is true
that when she hated
or disliked someone,
she would deal furi‑
ously with them,"
Uma Vasudev said.
The book narrates
Mrs Gandhi's life
from 1917 to 1971.
"The period where
the biography ends
was a crucial time
in her career,"
Vasudev states. The
Prime Minister had
led the Congress to
victory in the gener‑
al elections and
later that year, the Indian Army
completed a decisive victory over
the Pakistani Army in what was
then East Pakistan that led to the
creation of Bangladesh.
Umaʼs less known books are
"The Song of Anasuya", "Shreya
of Sonagarh", "Satish Gurjal:
Where the Silence Speaks,
Paintings", to name a few.
In her passing last month India
has lost a writer and conversa‑
tionalist of immense realism as
well as rare distinction.
 26 April 13-19, 2019
One in five deaths worldwide linked to poor diet: Study
New York: Eleven million deaths
in 2017 linked to poor diets high
in sugar, salt and processed meat,
experts say.
One in five deaths worldwide in
2017 were linked to people eat‑
ing poor diets high in sugar, salt
and processed meat that con‑
tributed to heart disease, cancer
and diabetes, a global study has
found. The research, published in
the Lancet medical journal, found
that among 195 countries stud‑
ied, the proportion of diet‑related
deaths was highest in Uzbekistan
and lowest in Israel.
In a breakdown of diet‑related
deaths, the Global Burden of
Disease study found that of the
11 million in 2017, almost 10
million were from cardiovascular
diseases; around 913,000 from
cancer; and almost 339,000 from
type 2 diabetes.
Consumption of healthier foods
such as nuts and seeds, milk and
whole grains was on average too
low, and people consumed too
many sugary drinks and too much
processed meat and salt.
Washington raises
smoking age to 21
to curb addiction
San Francisco: Governor
Jay Inslee of
Washington has signed
a bill into law raising
the state's smoking age
to 21 years, making it
the ninth in the country
to introduce such legis‑
lation, officials said.
The new law, which
was signed on Friday,
raised the legal mini‑
mum age for tobacco
purchases from 18
years old to 21. It was
passed in the Washington
Senate on Wednesday and will
take effect on January 1, 2020.
"We know the risks associat‑
ed with tobacco and nicotine ...
We know how much easier it is
to prevent our children from
becoming addicted in the first
place than to treat the addic‑
tion later in life, or even worse,
to treat the cancers and dis‑
eases caused by these prod‑
ucts," Inslee said.
The Governor signed the bill
in the presence of Washington
Attorney General Bob
Ferguson, dozens of students,
legislators and local health
officials at the Fred Hutchinson
Cancer Research Centre in
Seattle, the largest city in the
state, Xinhua news agency
reported.
Consumption of healthier foods such as nuts and seeds, milk and whole
grains was on average too low
Chris Murray, director of the
Institute for Health Metrics and
Evaluation at the University of
Washington, which led the work,
said it "af firms what many have
thought for several years.”
"Poor diet is responsible for
more deaths than any other risk
factor in the world," he said.
"Our assessment suggests the
Ferguson, a strong advocate
of the bill, said the legislature
was "saving thousands of peo‑
ple in Washington from a life‑
time of addiction and smoking‑
related illness through this
bill."
Hawaii was the first US state
to raise the smoking age to 21
when its Governor signed a bill
in 2015 to ban the sale, pur‑
chase or use of electronic ciga‑
rettes to those under the age of
21. Hawaii's law went into
effect on January 1, 2016.
Other US states that intro‑
duced similar laws include
California, Maine,
Massachusetts, New Jersey,
Utah, Virginia and Oregon, in
addition to the US Pacific terri‑
tory of Guam and the District
of Columbia.
HEALTH
leading dietary risk factors are
high intake of sodium, or low
intake of healthy foods, such as
whole g rains, fruit, nuts and
seeds, and vegetables."
The study said that, in 2017,
people ate only 12 percent of the
recommended amount of nuts
and seeds ‑ an average intake of
three grams a day, compared with
Walking top choice of fitness enthusiasts in India
New Delhi: Walking, jogging, and
running surpasses yoga and gym
training as the top choices of most
fitness enthusiasts in India, accord‑
ing to a new survey.
Zumba is also gaining promi‑
nence as a fitness form especially
among women, with 18 percent
respondents enjoying it in 2019, up
from 11 percent in 2017, showed
the Reebok "Fit India Survey 2.0"
launched on the occasion of World
Health Day.
Over half the respondents (53
percent) confirmed that they have
at least five activities included in
their fitness regime, with walking
(84 percent), jogging (64 percent),
running (63 percent), yoga (56 per‑
cent) and gym training (53 percent)
emerging as the top choices.
The results showed that millenni‑
als in the country are increasingly
opting towards a healthier lifestyle,
with 95 percent of respondents
indulging in at least one fitness
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
the recommended 21g ‑ and
drank more than 10 times the
recommended amount of sugary
drinks.
Diets high in sugar, salt and bad
fats are known risk factors for
heart disease, stroke, diabetes and
many types of cancer.
The global diet also included
less than a quarter of the recom‑
mended amount of whole grains ‑
at 29g average intake a day com‑
pared with the recommended
125g ‑ and almost double the rec‑
ommended amount of processed
meat ‑ at around four grams aver‑
age intake a day compared with
the two grams recommended.
In January, a consortium of
three dozen researchers called for
a dramatic shift in the way the
world eats.
The report said that the global
population must eat roughly half
as much red meat and sugar and
twice as many vegetables, fruits
and nuts in order to avert a
worldwide obesity epidemic and
avoid "catastrophic" climate
change. The authors also noted
activity ‑ running, jogging or walk‑
ing. For the study, over 2,200 men
and women, between the age group
of 18‑35 years, were surveyed
across nine cities in the country.
Among all, Kolkata scored the
highest "FitScore" ‑‑ a combination
of a number of fitness activities
participated in, the frequency of
working out and nutritional aware‑
ness ‑ of 9. While Kolkata is closely
followed by De lhi‑NCR w ith a
FitScore of 7.99, Pune dropped
from number 1 position in 2017 to
the eighth on this year's list with a
that economic inequality was a
factor in poor dietary choices in
many countries.
The report found that on aver‑
age, reaching the "five‑a‑day" fruit
and vegetable servings advocated
by doctors cost just two percent
of household income in rich
nations, but more than a half of
household income in poorer ones.
"This study gives us good evi‑
dence of what to target to
improve diets, and there fore
health, at the global and national
level," said Oyinlola Oyebode, an
associate professor at Warwick
Medical School, who was not
involved in the research.
"The lack of fruit, vegetables
and whole grains in diets across
the world are very important, but
the other dietary factor highlight‑
ed by this study is the high intake
of sodium." Annual deaths related
to diet have increased from eight
million in 1990, but the
researchers said this was largely
due to increases in population
and population aging.
(source: Aljazeera.com)
Participating
in marathons
is a
growing
trend among
female
fitness
enthusiasts
low FitScore of 5.73. With a
FitScore of 7.64, Mumbai was
placed third.
This year's survey revealed an
increase in women undertaking
self‑defense activities, with 45 per‑
cent respondents including it as
part of their fitness regime.
Strength workouts have also
gained popularity among women in
the last couple of years.
More than 50 percent of female
respondents also claimed to have
participated in a marathon, half‑
marathon or a quarter marathon.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
H-3 Nonimmigrant Trainee or Special
Education Exchange Visitor Visa
By Dev Banad Viswanath, Esq.
& Michael Phulwani, Esq.
A TALK
n H‑3 visa is a work visa for
foreign individuals who
would like to come to the
U.S. for a specific period of time to
receive training or special educa‑
tion. If an individual comes to the
U.S. to receive training they must
enroll in a training program which
is not available to them in their
home country. Some areas of train‑
ing can be in the fields of agricul‑
ture, commerce, communication,
finance, or transportation. The indi‑
vidual cannot receive a full academ‑
ic degree while in the training pro‑
gram or receive any medical train‑
ing. An individualʼs purpose for
attending a training program
should be to obtain advanced skills
which are not available in their
home country and then go back
home and apply them. The training
should also help the individual
advance in their career. If an indi‑
vidual comes to the U.S. to receive
special education training they
must enroll in an academic or
hands‑on program in order to
Junior Year Checklist for College admissions
SHINE ON, STUDENTS
By Kristen Moon
J
unior year is a turning point
for many families because it
marks the year when college
planning activities begin to con‑
sume your free time. It helps to go
into your senior year with a plan,
so start now to ensure that you
are not falling behind.
Spring Of Your
Junior Year
Meet With Your Counselor : Make
sure you will complete all the req‑
uisites for your diploma. Take full
advantage of the classes of fered
by your high school and schedule
a rigorous course load.
Check on your class rank and
your current GPA. If you havenʼt
VISA
advance their understanding of
children with special needs. Special
needs may include physical needs,
mental challenges, or emotional
challenges.
In order to qualify for an H‑3 visa
a foreign individual must receive an
invitation from the training organi‑
zation to attend their program. The
individual should provide USCIS
with a letter describing in detail the
training organization and the pro‑
gram they will be enrolled in. The
letter should include information
such as:
4 The syllabus of the program;
4 The schedule of when lectures
will be held, when, and if necessary,
how many hours of practical work
will take place;
4 What benefits the organiza‑
tion receives by providing that spe‑
cific type of training;
4 How the applicant will be ben‑
performed as well as you had
hoped the first two years of high
school, it is not too late to change
that. An upward trend in grades is
something colleges like to see.
Standardized Tests : During the
beginning of the semester, look
up testing dates and locations for
the SAT and or ACT. The tests are
typically of fered about once a
month during the school year.
Signing up for both can give you
an advantage because you can
decide which one highlights your
strengths.
College Visits : Begin to narrow
down your college selection and
schedule visits to your top choices
for the summer. Make sure those
colleges fit the most important
qualifications to you ‑ size, loca‑
tion, cost, majors, or any special
IMMIGRATION
efited by the program; and/or
4 Why this type of program is
not available in the individualʼs for‑
eign home.
Similar to other H visas, the H‑3
visa can not be applied for by a for‑
eign national themselves, the
organization where the training
will be held needs to petition for
the foreign national to be granted
an H‑3 visa. The organization is
required to send a petition to USCIS
with a description of the training or
special education program, proof
that such program is offered at the
organization, and supporting docu‑
ments as to why the applicant
should be granted an H‑3 visa.
Supporting documents can include
information about an applicantʼs
educational background, employ‑
ment history, and if they had
received any training in the past.
An applicant who would like to
receive special education training
must show that they are almost
done with a baccalaureate or high‑
er degree program in special edu‑
cation, or has already received a
baccalaureate or higher degree
program in special education, or
EDUCATION
By starting
early, you
can put
together a
stronger
application
that might
help you
get into
your dream
college.
programs that are of interest.
Letter of Recommendations : Most
schools require you to submit at
least one or two Letters of
Recommendations (LOR) from a
teacher or guidance counselor.
Additional letters can be written
by a manager, a club leader,
coach, or anyone you have formed
a close relationship with recently.
Begin to gather the material you
will give each person to help them
write the best LOR possible.
SAT Subject Tests : Start to do
more research about what they
require for admission, such as SAT
Subject Tests. There are four poli‑
cies reg arding Subject Tests:
required, recommended, consid‑
ered, and alternative. If it is finan‑
cially feasible for you to take the
SAT Subject Tests, and schools on
April 13-19, 2019 27
have a lot of prior training and may be granted in a fiscal year. An
experience teaching children with H‑3 visa holder in a training pro‑
physical, mental, or emotional dis‑ gram may be allowed to stay in the
abilities. A form I‑129 must also be U.S. for up to 2 years and an H‑3
filled out and included in an H‑3 visa holder in a special education
visa petition. program may be allowed to stay in
An H‑3 visa holder is not allowed the U.S for up to 18 months.
to work in the U.S, the only type of Spouses and children under the age
work that is allowed is practical of 21 may come with an H‑3 visa
work that is part of the course holder to the U.S. as an H‑4 nonim‑
work of the training program. migrant. Spouses and children are
There are not many H‑3 special not allowed to work while under
education visas granted yearly, the H‑4 visa status but they are
only 50 H‑3 special education visas allowed to attend school.
Dev Banad Viswanath is the Principal Attorney of
The Banad Law Offices PC in the United States,
and Banad Immigration in India for which
Attorney Michael Phulwani is also affiliated as Of
Counsel. With Offices in Manhattan, Queens,
Bangalore, and Mumbai, the firm is able to assist
clients with all facets of the immigration process,
including Employment Visas, Consular Visa
Assistance, Student Visas, Removal &
Deportation, US Citizenship and Green Card
Applications based on Family or Employment.
Dev B. Viswanath can be reached at
Dev@Banadlaw.com and 718‑361‑5999.
He will be in India from April 21 through
May 10 and able to meet people for
personal consultations.
your list either require or recom‑ Your LinkedIn profile should be
mend it, you can sign up and pre‑ your online portfolio that adds
pare for them in the spring and another dimension to your appli‑
summer. cat ion. You want to include
A small number of colleges have videos, pictures, research papers,
the policy that Subject Tests can and anything else that can help to
act as an alternative to standard‑ humanize you to the admissions
ized testing; they allow an appli‑ staff.
cant to submit Subject Test scores The second semester of your
in lieu of ACT and SAT scores. junior year is an essential time for
FAFSA : Once you narrow down preparing for college. By starting
your college list, go to their web‑ early, you can put together a
sites to find out how much it costs stronger application that might
per year to go there. Get to know help you get into your dream col‑
the Free Application for Federal lege.
Student Aid (FAFSA). Even though
you canʼt fill out the FAFSA until
October 1 of your senior year, you
can start to gather the necessary
materials.
The Summer After Your Junior
Year : The summer should be your
time to get a headstart on your
application process. Check out the
Common Application to see their
se lection of essays and begin
working on them as soon as possi‑
ble.
Resume and LinkedIn : T he
Common Application has a limited Kristen Moon is an
character count for extracurricu‑ independent college
lar descriptions, therefore, your counselor and founder
resume can be used to expand on of MoonPrep.com.
your accomplishments.
 28 April 13-19, 2019 HUMOR TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Humor with Melvin Durai

The fine art of making chapattis

B
ack in 2013, I was really
excited when I heard about
the Rotimatic, a kitchen appli‑
ance that can make one roti per
minute. It sounded perfect for me,
because I can eat one roti per
minute.
I enjoy rotis (or chapattis, as I call
them) more than rice. My wife,
Malathi, prefers rice. So guess what
we eat more often? Yes, rice.
We eat rice often not just because
Malathi prefers it, but also because
itʼs easy to cook. Just put it in a pot,
add water and boil. Most Indian men
can cook rice, even without buying
the book “Rice‑Cooking for
Dummies.” But not many men can
make chapattis, as I proved recently
when I picked five men at random
and invited them to my kitchen to
make a chapatti. One of the men
promptly walked out of the kitchen,
drove to the nearest Indian store and
returned with a bag of Desi brand
“Ready‑to‑Cook Chapattis.”
“Iʼve tried different brands, but this
one is the best,” he said, speaking
like a chapatti connoisseur. The
other four men – letʼs call them Raj,
Habib, Manish and Pawan – attempt‑
ed to make chapattis from scratch.
Raj, in particular, had to do a lot of
scratching.
“My mistake was that I added too
much water to the flour,” he later
said. “The dough was too sticky.
When I tried to roll it, it kept getting
stuck to the wooden board. I had to
scratch it off so many times. I could‑
nʼt make it into a circle, but at least it
has a shape.”
It did have a shape: the shape of
India.
Habib did the opposite of Raj. He
added too little water to the flour.
“When I tried to roll it, it wouldnʼt go
anywhere,” he said. “It was too stiff.
side, white on the other, reflecting
his views on equal rights. “I turned
the stove too high, but I quickly cor‑
rected it,” he said. His chapatti wasnʼt
circular, but at least it was a geomet‑
ric shape: a trapezoid.
Pawan produced the best‑looking
chapatti, but it didnʼt taste quite
right. “My mistake was that I didnʼt
look carefully at the ingredients list,”
he said. “I think I added too much
chili powder.” I tossed his chapatti to
So I did what any smart man would Legacy, but she just gave me a nasty
do: I got a hammer and hit it. I kept look and walked away.
hitting it until it became flat and Like these four men, my first
round. It turned out really well. I attempt at making chapattis didnʼt
hope you liked it.” go well. I couldnʼt roll them properly
His chapatti looked pretty good, and they were a little too crispy. But I
but when I took a bite of it, it didnʼt give up: I kept trying, until I
chipped of f my
front tooth. I gave
the rest to my
dog, Legacy, who Laughter is the Best Medicine
has been gnaw‑
ing on it for the
last month.
Manishʼs chap‑
atti was a little
better, though it
was black on one
received a great compliment from
my wife. “Wow,” she said one
evening. “Theyʼre almost edible.”
These days, I usually have a helper
when I make chapattis: my son,
Rahul. Heʼs always eager to roll chap‑
attis, unlike his two sisters. Even
with his help, I make chapattis only
once or twice a month. Thatʼs why Iʼd
love to get my hands on a Rotimatic,
whenever itʼs available in stores.
The Rotimatic, being produced by
a California‑based company named
Zimplistic might be too pricey for
me, but perhaps I can turn it into a
new career: roti‑supplier for my
entire city. Iʼve already taken pre‑
orders from Raj, Habib, Manish and
Pawan.

BEST
RATE
FOR
INDIA
AND
PAKISTAN
New York Head Quarter
422‑S Broadway
HICKSVILLE
NY 11801

516‑827‑1010 By Mahendra Shah

Mahendra Shah is an architect by education, entrepreneur by profession,
artist and humorist, cartoonist and writer by hobby. He has been recording
the plight of the immigrant Indians for the past many years in his
cartoons. Hailing from Gujarat, he lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info ASTROLOGY April 13-19, 2019 29

Chandigarh, India: +91-172- 256 2832, 257 2874

By Dr Prem Kumar Sharma Delhi, India: +91-11- 2644 9898, 2648 9899
psharma@premastrologer.com; w.premastrologer.com

APRIL 13‑19, 2019

Aries: Resuming your daily workouts
will be a step in the right direction
and help you in regaining total fitness.
A satisfying period is foreseen on the
romantic front. Over confidence on the aca‑
demic front may be your undoing. Socially,
you will be able to impress those who are
the movers and shakers in your circle. On
the business front, you are on the verge of
signing a big deal.
Taurus: Attracting people from the
opposite gender is foretold, so
rejoice as romance seems just round
the corner! Spouse proves a great support.
Good news awaits you on the financial
front, as chances of coming across big
money cannot be ruled out. Pursuing your
academic dream becomes possible now.
Help will be forthcoming for something you
wanted done at home.
Gemini: Adding to your skills by
doing some course or attending some
training is likely to enhance your
employability. Wise investments will find
your financial health improving. Something
that you have started on the side will
become profitable. Much love and harmony
can be expected on the domestic front. You
are likely to succeed in your to rejuvenate
your love life.
Cancer: You will need to direct your
energies in thinking and doing posi‑
tive, if you want a happy state of
mind. There seems a significant improve‑
ment in the condition of someone who is
unwell. A good investment scheme may
come your way. You can be in a contempla‑
tive mood at work and may reflect upon the
satisfaction you are deriving out of your
present job.
Leo: You may be made to do extra
hours at work, but will get to learn a
lot. Financial help will be forthcom‑
ing for those seeking it. You may have to
abandon your idea, as it does not look practi‑
cal. A lifestyle change is possible for some,
just to live healthily. Your creativity and eye
for detail is likely to prove a boon for your
home. You may feel reluctant to attend a
social gathering and succeed in avoiding it.
Virgo: Donʼt have blind trust in
health products, they may not suit
you. You may become instrumental
in solving someone elseʼs problems on the
social front. Something promising is likely
to happen on the romantic front. You are
likely to create good openings on the job
front by sheer social networking. You will
manage to continue with your winning
streak on the professional front.
Libra: Handsome profits can be
expected in a business. You may
have to judge things correctly in a
joint family situation to keep the domestic
fabric intact. Things look up in your work
sphere, as you take steps to make yourself
more useful. You will draw your partner
nearer by revving up your romance.
Healthy alternatives promise to bring you
in the prime of your health.
Scorpio: Your suggestions on the pro‑
fessional front may not count initial‑
ly, but will matter at a later date.
Those playing the stocks are likely to hit it
rich. Something you had started previously
is likely to bring gains the coming week. A
lot of pressure can be put on some for
marriage.
Bringing order to your life will keep you in
fine fettle on the health front.
Sagittarius: Those with a creative
bent of mind can feel a bit frustrat‑
ed due to lack of recognit ion.
Wayside food may play havoc with your
system, so desist.
Small, but regular, gains will keep your
bank balance in a healthy state. Someone is
likely to express his or her love for you and
place you on a pedestal! You maintain your
fitness level.
Capricorn: A promising week for
lovers is foretold. Someone may be
following you closely regarding
your performance, so donʼt relax. Condition
of those who have undergone surgery will
improve quickly. An excellent investment
opportunity comes your way that will lead
you to financial security. You are likely to
get passes or invites for a much awaited
extravaganza, so rejoice!
Aquarius: You will succeed in get‑
ting your work recognised by the
ones who matter. You manage to
save enough to organise a grand function
or an event. Purchase or development of
property is on the cards for some. Regular
medication will negate the ef fect of a
lifestyle disease for those suffering from it.
You may need to spike your romance with
some excitement.
Pisces: You are likely to win this week
on the professional front by your orig‑
inal ideas. Those seeking love need to
be at their impressive best! Monetary posi‑
tion may take various swings, so donʼt under‑
take anything involving money. Those in the
creative fields will be hard put to find ready
buyers. Take adequate measures to counter
the season while travelling. Some of you can
risk your health by eating out.

April 13, 2019 canʼt trust. Businessmen will

Influenced by number 4 and the
planet Uranus, you are smart,
confident, energetic, systematic,
reliable and a studious person.
Your efficiency and determina‑
tion makes you achieve the maxi‑
mum and stay ahead of others.
You always hold posit ion of
immense importance and respon‑
sibility, but you need to control
your tendency to behave stub‑
born, jealous and vindictive at
times.
The coming year brings won‑
derful business opportunities for
you. Finances improve through
g ains from investments and
ancestral property. Long pending
legal disputes will finally be sort‑
ed out. Religious ceremonies and
functions will be performed quite
frequently. A sudden influence of
a person from the opposite sex
will give a new and interesting
twist to your life. Do not share
your business secrets with col‑
leagues or casual associates.
Avoid lending and borrowing
money. The months of December,
February, June and August will
prove to be highly productive.
April 14, 2019
Ruled by number 5 and the
planet Mercury, you are active,
intelligent, sensible, systematic
and highly courageous person.
You have an excellent foresight,
but you find it difficult to keep up
to the plans because of your ten‑
dency to behave casual, moody
and lazy at times.
Your stars bring you fresh
opportunities for growth in your
career. Those seeking to venture
ANNUAL PREDICTIONS: FOR THOSE BORN IN THIS WEEK
overseas w ill get to receive
encouraging news from people
abroad. Foreign transactions and
travel seem likely later in the
year. Unexpected losses are fore‑
seen through speculation, there‑
fore invest wisely. Work pressure
will take its toll on your health.
Eat properly and exercise to stay
in perfect shape. Those who are
in construction business, import
/export or trading of garments
can expect a sudden rise in prof‑
its. Pilg rimage towards the
yearend seems likely. The months
of December, April, May and
August will prove to be very
important.
April 15, 2019
Ruled by number 6 and the
planet Venus, you are energetic,
smart, attractive, accommodating,
diplomatic & highly practical per‑
son. Your great assets are your
charming personality and confi‑
dence, but you need to check
your tendency to behave too out‑
spoken and restless at times.
This year try to stay away from
business partnerships or any new
joint ventures. Partnerships will
be very alluring but definitely not
recommended for the first six
months. You need to be extra cau‑
tious before making any financial
commitments or signing new con‑
tracts. Benefits in cash and kind
will accrue later in the year. New
romance will develop through
social activities. Relationship with
your spouse will be healthy and
highly cordial. Some tension and
anxiety due to health of your par‑
ents cannot be ruled out. The
months of January, March and
September will be significant.
April 16, 2019
Influenced by number 7 and the
planet Neptune, you are trustwor‑
thy, af fectionate, creative, sensi‑
tive and an emotional individual.
You are a person who always
wears a million‑dollar smile on
your face, which makes it very
easy for you to make friends and
win favours. You are smart and
talented, but you need to control
your tendency to behave stub‑
born, arrogant and extravagant at
times.
This year new ventures and
plans will improve your financial
status. Your investments will mul‑
t iply and y ie ld goo d profits.
Matrimonial alliance for some
towards the end of the year, while
others will find romance to keep
them going. Children will win lau‑
rels and make you feel proud.
Sportsmen, artists, scholars will
scale new heights in their profes‑
sional career. Pending legal mat‑
ters will end satisfactorily, bring‑
ing you mental relief. Chronic
patients will need to take extra
care of their health. Meditation
and yoga will help immensely.
T he months of October,
December, February and June
will prove highly significant.
April 17, 2019
Influenced by number 8 and the
planet Saturn. You are smart,
practical, honest, disciplined,
methodical and authoritative per‑
son. You are helpful and sincere
to your friends and enjoy enor‑
mous respect in your group, but
you need to check your tendency
to behave rigid, extravagant and
jealous at times.
This is the perfect time to put in
maximum ef forts to reap long‑
term rewards. Your family mem‑
bers will be supportive and assist
you in making important deci‑
sions. Pending jobs and projects
will get completed to your satis‑
faction. Your health will be nor‑
mal but health of a family mem‑
ber may become reason for stress
and anxiety. A distant journey
preferably overseas brings finan‑
cial benefits and opportunity to
meet eminent and influential peo‑
ple. T he month of November,
March, May and July will prove to
be eventful.
April 18, 2019
Ruled by number 9 and the
planet Mars. You are intelligent,
energetic, confident, enthusiastic
and courageous person. You
make firm decisions and once you
have taken a decision it lasts for‑
ever. You are strong and highly
diplomatic person, but you need
to check your tendency to behave
short tempered and vindictive at
times.
You will find many good invest‑
ment opportunities this year, so
be highly judicious in making
your decisions. Donʼt share your
ideas and plans with people you
expand into new and more prof‑
itable ventures. Especially
rewarding period for journalist,
doctors and marketing profes‑
sionals. Spouse and children will
be supportive, but require your
additional attention. Health of a
near one, possibly a young infant
may bring stress and tension.
Wedding bells for those eligible.
T he months of December,
February, April and September
will prove to be significant.
April 19, 2019
Influenced by number 1 and the
Sun, you are authoritative, confi‑
dent, determined, responsible and
creative person. Your are very
attracted to your father who is
generally your inspiration and
best friend. You are highly decent
and well mannered, but you need
to curb your tendency to behave
careless and spendthrift at times.
This year you should concen‑
trate on your priorities and your
e f forts w ill definite ly bring
desired results. Past investments
will fetch returns and long pend‑
ing property disputes will settle
amicably. Unexpected gifts and
presents from near ones and
friends will keep you in high spir‑
its. New plans and ventures will
start on a positive note. Family
front will be pleasant as children
and spouse will provide you with
love and affection. Health seems
fine but even then, it is recom‑
mended that you avoid overeat‑
ing and alcohol. The months of
October, Fe bruary, May and
August will prove to be highly
important.
30 April 13-19, 2019
By Sant Rajinder Singh
Ji Maharaj
T
he search to either or dis‑
prove the soulʼs immortal
nature has been an ongo‑
ing quest for humanity through
the ages. Evidence in support of
the soulʼs immortality has
appeared in two forms: The first
consists of statements and
accounts given by saints,
prophets, and mystics who
claimed to have passed through
the gates of the Beyond in their
mystic travels; the second con‑
sists of the accounts of people
who have gone through near‑
death experiences.
By Sant Rajinder
Singh Ji Maharaj
M
any fee l each of us is
alone in the universe. We
wonder if there is a God,
and, if there is, how could God
even know about us, given the bil‑
lions of people in the world.
In this age of science, we may
find it hard to believe in a power
such as God who could create all
of us and love us. We feel that the
only love that is possible in the
universe is what we know as
human beings, such as between
parents and children, lovers and
beloveds, spouses, or families. We
think that because we cannot see
God with our physical eyes that
such a power could not really
exist. Yet, we have mult iple
instances that show love in this
world, a love of which the recipi‑
ent may not even be aware, that
still exists.
We cannot see God at our physi‑
cal level. We assume that because
we cannot see the Lord, that there
is no God. However, God is there,
and embracing us with love at all
moments. Just because we are not
aware of that love does not mean
it is not there. We do not know
that God has immeasurable love
for us.
Yet, we are always wrapped in
Godʼs protective embrace.
How can we experience Godʼs
love and know for certain there is
a God?
We may get a sense there is a
God when we look at the wonders
of creation. When we see how the
SPIRITUAL AWARENESS
Immortality of the soul
The worldʼs main religions all
recognize the immortality of the
soul. The descriptions in the
scriptures of the soulʼs journey
after life differ from religion to
religion, but one common thread
runs throughout them: the soul
survives the death of the physical
body. Some people view this
aspect of religion that deals with
soulʼs immortality as a hopeful
wish, a fairy tale, or a pipe dream.
Atheists may not believe in the
soul or its immortality, agnostics
may be unsure, and skeptics may
question its validity, but all
search for proof one way or the
other.
How do various traditions
describe the soulʼs immortality?
Ancient Egyptians believed that
after death the soul lived on in an
underworld region close to the
earth. From this belief arose the
rituals of burying the dead with
their worldly possessions in case
the dead needed them in the
beyond. Some early African soci‑
eties also believed in the soul
Realizing we are never alone
sun and the planets keep their
place in the solar system without
colliding into each other, we won‑
der at how that could happen. We
see how out of all the planets, few
are habitable enough to support
human life because they are either
too hot, too cold, or lack an atmos‑
phere for breathing. We marvel at
the earth and how it is just the
right temperature to support life,
has just the right mix of elements
for breathing, and just the right
amount of land surface on which
to live, otherwise it would just be a
planet of water.
We marve l at life itse lf, the
human body, animals, and plants,
and how they have been created
to survive generation after genera‑
tion for millions of years. We mar‑
vel at the various systems in the
human body that allow us to eat,
breathe, grow, reproduce, and
repair themselves when injured.
We wonder at the miracle of the
human brain and how we take in
information, learn, plan, analyze,
and create.
T he cycles of the earth are
incredible with the water cycle to
supply the planet and its inhabi‑
tants with a fresh supply of water
for billions of years for drinking
and washing. We wonder at the
rock cycle in which rock is broken
down to form new soil or is built
up to create land, hills, and moun‑
tains on which to live. We marvel
immortality. In ancient Greece,
people believed that the soul of a
dead person was ferried across
the dark waters of the river Styx.
The Greek philosophers Socrates
and Plato also believed in the
immortality of the soul. As
Socrates told those around him
before drinking the poison given
to him by the authorities.
“[When] I have drunk the poison I
shall remain with you no longer,
but depart to a state of heavenly
happiness…” Hindus also believe
in the immortality of the soul,
which transmigrates from one life
at how plants provide food for
people and animals, as well as
oxygen given off as waste for us to
breathe. The more scientists learn
about the workings of the uni‑
verse, of physics, chemistry, biolo‑
gy, astronomy, and geology, the
more they conclude that some
super intelligent power must have
designed all this.
Beyond the scientists, we have
scientists of the soul, or saints and
Masters, who have explored the
inner workings of creation. They
have been in touch with the non‑
material aspect of life, the spirit or
soul, through firsthand personal
experience. They have come in all
the ages, in all cultures and time
periods, and have all concluded
the same thing̶there is a Power
who created all that is, whether we
call it God or by any other name,
and that Power is a loving one that
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
to another. The soul returns to
life to work through its karmas, a
collection of the thoughts, words,
and deeds it experienced in its
current and previous lives.
Kabir Sahib of India gave a
detailed account of the various
planes of existence to which a
soul goes after death. The three
lower regions include the physi‑
cal, astral, and casual regions that
are made of mixtures of matters
and consciousness and are sub‑
ject to dissolution; the higher
spiritual regions, which are eter‑
nal, include the supercausal plane
brought us all into being. It is lov‑
ing and protective of the creation
that sprouted into being from its
power of love. Just as parents
decide to bring a child into this
world as an expression of their
love and a desire to create of f‑
spring, so did God bring all cre‑
ation into being out of love and
the same desire to create.
Godʼs love came into expression
and the result is the existence of
all the realms of existence, this
physical universe, human beings,
animals, plants, and everything
that is. God started alone and from
Godʼs love countless souls were
created. It may seem like God can‑
not know all the souls God creat‑
ed, but God does, and loves and
protects each one. Similarly, we
may not know it, just as an infant
is not aware that it exists because
of its parents, but that Power is
and a spiritual plane known as
Sach Khand or True Realm, from
where God emanates. The soul
transmigrates through a series of
lives until it escapes the cycle.
Guru Nanak and the Sikh Gurus
also believed in the same journey
of the soul after physical life. The
Buddhist Tibetan Book of the
Deed, describes the immortality
of the soul and its journey after
death. Christian and Jewish mys‑
tics also speak of the soulʼs
immortality and regions beyond
this world. These accounts of the
soulʼs immortality are not coinci‑
dental.
There is a truth behind the rev‑
elations of all the saints, mystics,
prophets, and enlightened ones
who have come through the ages.
The question now is whether
there is any evidence that can be
confirmed today by modern
science to validate the findings of
the religious founders of the
past.
(For more visit www.sos.org)
there, loving us and protecting us.
In this age of science and ration‑
ality, few want to believe in God,
as this Power cannot be seen with
the physical senses. Yet, God is
there. Saints and Masters who
have found God tell us that if we
truly want to believe in God, we
need to experience it for our‑
selves. Thus, they give us a way to
prove Godʼs existence for our‑
selves. Once we do so, we will also
realize Godʼs love for us is like the
love of the parent for a child.
How can we prove Godʼs exis‑
tence and love for us? The way we
can do so is through meditation. If
we sit in silence and focus our
attention within, we will find the
manifestation of God in the form
of the inner Light and Sound. We
can travel on this source back to
God and merge in that divine
Power. This inner journey through
meditation will lead us to the real‑
ization of God and the embracing
love that God has for each of us.
God is not far. God is within us.
God has protective arms around
us.
Our soul is connected to God.
Our problem is that we are not
aware of our soul, so we do not
realize God. Our first step is to
achieve self‑realization or knowl‑
edge of our true self. Once we do
so, we will find that we are one
with God and will achieve God‑
realization.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info April 13-19, 2019

Kohl, kajal, and surma can

contain lead, which can
cause learning and behavior
problems in children,
miscarriage in pregnant
women, and infertility.
„ Wash your hands after
handling.
„ Keep away from children.
„ If you use kohl, kajal,
or surma, ask your doctor
for a blood lead test.

WARNING: MAY CONTAIN LEAD

Call 311 or visit nyc.gov/leadfree

for more information.
Bill de Blasio
Mayor
Oxiris Barbot, MD
Commissioner
TheSouthAsianTimes.info April 13-19, 2019

Happy
Vaisakhi